Back in September
by actualdavyjones
Summary: Trini Kwan and Eugene "Skull" Skullovitch couldn't be more opposite. Yet, how is it that they've gotten together? How could the two have a son? How did the two get to this point in their lives almost 10 years after high school? Everything that's happened seems to have occurred because of an innocent little bet they made all those years ago, back in September. TrinixSkull
1. The Bet

_Back In September_

_**Chapter 1: The Bet**_

A life can change in an instant. It can change in ways that you would never expect. Every choice we make, the actions we choose, the words that we say, even the smallest most seemingly insignificant factor can alter the future drastically, for better or for worse. The tiniest thing can easily evolve into the greatest catalyst for the unfolding of events to come. This is a crucial concept that a group of unique teens from Angel Grove High would come to learn in time.

The final dismissal bell rang and the school hallways immediately flooded with chit-chatting students excited to go home. A particular few were itching to head to their usual hangout at Ernie's Juice Bar at the Angel Grove Youth Center.

"I can't wait to get to the Center!" Kimberly beamed opening her locker. "I've hardly had any time to practice my newest floor routine before my meet!" she explained to her friend Trini, who was collecting her textbooks and storing them into her shoulder bag. She chuckled.

"I know what you mean." The Asian beauty sympathized. "All these monster attacks haven't given me a chance to—" she was interrupted as someone creeped up behind them.

"A chance to go out with me?" a snarky voice asked, complimented by the incredibly insufferable smacking of chewing gum. Kimberly rolled her eyes knowing exactly who the voice and the gum smacking noise belonged to.

"In your dreams, Skull!" she snapped, focusing her attention on the inside of her locker. The punk chuckled.

"I'll be sure to go to bed early then." He winked, running his hand through his gelled dark hair.

"Gross." The gymnast sneered back at him. Skull pouted with a whimper, but this rejection didn't deter him from continuing to push their buttons as he always did. This was a daily pastime for him and his best friend, Bulk, who on this day was stuck at home, sick in bed. Normally, Skull would continue to creep and press Kimberly for a date or a kiss until the girls' muscular friend Jason would scare him off, but Jason was nowhere to be seen the hallway. As Skull continued pestering Kimberly, Trini knew she had to get rid of him, the question was how.

"I can't believe I mastered Mozart's Allegro today!" A boy excitedly proclaimed to his friend as they exited the music room from band class.

"I know! That was awesome man!" his friend replied, sharing his friend's joy. Skull scoffed.

"I've heard that kid's piano playing. Any _monkey_ could play the piano!" Skull cackled. Trini suddenly had her way out gift-wrapped and dropped right into her lap. Bulk and Skull were _always_ known for shooting down other student's accomplishments when they themselves couldn't accomplish the same feat if their lives depended on it. Before Skull could turn his attention back to Kimberly, Trini stepped toward him to propose her challenge.

"You think you can play better than him?" she asked defiantly. Skull looked shaken not expecting to be called out.

"Yeah, well," he scoffed, "maybe." He answered trying to play it cool. Trini smiled coyly.

"How about, if you can prove that you can play the piano better than that student, I will go on a date with you." Trini challenged. Kimberly looked bewildered at her friend's boldness.

"Trini?" she started. Skull grinned wickedly at the idea of taking out one of Angel Grove's most brilliant and beautiful students on a date.

"A date…If I can play the piano better than that guy?" he clarified giving a nod in the direction of the boy further down the hallway.

"Yes." She gave a nod. She held up a finger before he could speak, "BUT! If you lose, you have to promise that you and Bulk will leave Kimberly and I alone until _after_ graduation." Trini challenged. Kimberly smiled understanding her best friend's angle. The petite brunette grinned confidently. Skull took a moment to think it over, looking worried while weighing his options.

"W-well, I…" he stammered. Kimberly laughed.

"What's the matter? Can't do it?" she teased with a proud chuckle. Skull smiled determinedly sticking out his hand for Trini to shake.

"Alright. You've got a deal, Ms. Kwan." He said, leaning in close as Trini gave a firm hand shake. Though, Trini noticed that something about his smile felt _off_. She was sure that this was his way of seeming tough, but this didn't feel like his usual air of false confidence. She pushed down this nagging feeling, and led him off to the music room so they could be alone.

"I'll meet up with you at the Youth Center later, Kimberly! I don't want to keep you from your time to practice." Trini called, "This shouldn't take long!"

"'Kay, Trini! Let me know how it goes! Hopefully your ears don't fall off!" she teased. Skull couldn't help but chuckle mockingly at her silly quip and rolled his eyes as he opened the door to the music room. Skull and Trini entered the empty classroom and shut the door behind them. A simple upright Baldwin piano sat near the front of the classroom facing out into the room. Skull looked at the awaiting instrument, wide eyed. He looked back at Trini fearfully. Trini crossed her arms and gestured for him to take a seat.

"Well, go on. Impress me." She urged. Skull shrugged and went around and took his seat on the wooden bench. He lifted the cover off the range of black and white keys. He looked them up and down, the corner of his mouth giving a twitch. Skull looked up at the impatient teen girl.

"Well?" she said egging him on. Skull lifted his fingers, wiggled them, and shook them out before lightly placing them just over the keys. He took a breath ready to dive in, but abruptly turned back to her.

"Just thought I'd ask before I make this magic happen, I get to choose the restaurant, and the time, yeah?" he asked in a cocky tone. This was when Trini's stomach flipped. Why would he ask such an arrogant question when he hadn't played anything yet? The anticipation was really beginning to gnaw at her.

"_If_ you can play, yes you get to choose the time and place." Trini replied, standing firm as she folded her arms across her chest impatiently. He gave a shrug as if to say, 'Alright, whatever you say.'

Without another moment's hesitation, he childishly clanged a single key after another with his index finger, eliciting a giggle from Trini. Just as she had expected, he couldn't play. She and Kimberly would be free from Bulk and Skull for nearly two years. Skull stopped and glanced up at Trini with a smile before returning his eyes to the keys.

Suddenly, his fingers began flying effortlessly, playing a rich and powerful sonata [_Beethoven's Sonata No. 17 "Tempest"_]. Trini's mouth fell open in utter shock. Her gut had been right after all. Clearly, he had hustled her. She wanted to be furious, but as he continued to play, her anger slowly subsided into amazement. He swayed in and out getting taken in by the flow of the music, his eyes glued to the keys in immense concentration.

Trini came around to the other side of the piano and watched just over his shoulder. It wasn't a trick. She knew this wasn't a player piano, but then, how and when did Skull learn to play classical music like that? She couldn't help but be mesmerized by the swift and agile movement of his fingers. It was as if his playing had her enraptured in a musical spell. 'Magic' he called it, Trini couldn't deny that this was an incredibly accurate description of what she was experiencing beside him.

When Skull concluded the piece, he carefully closed the key cover and leaned his elbow against it. A smug grin spread across his face.

"So…Tony's Pizza at 6?" he asked triumphantly. 

5


	2. The Date

_**Chapter 2: The Date**_

"So…Tony's Pizza at 6?" he asked triumphantly. What just happened? She hadn't even realized that she had some point sat beside him on the bench. She looked to the closed piano and back to his somewhat haughty expression. Trini was absolutely speechless. She smiled, stammering, trying desperately to find the right words to say in response to the brilliant performance.

"I-I can't believe it. How long have you been able to play like that?" she asked, her long black hair falling over her shoulder as she looked on at him. Skull raised his eyebrows and gave a shrug as if what he had just performed was no big deal.

"Been playing since I was 3. My mom signed me up for lessons, so I'm taking private lessons with the Angel Grove symphony orchestra pianist." He explained. "It's really nothing-"

"But, that was INCREDIBLE!" she complimented. "Do you…do you like classical music?" she questioned further.

"Actually I do." He answered truthfully. "I always have. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love that good ol' rock and roll, but something about classical…" he said opening himself up to her. Trini would never have guessed that this side of him existed. Eugene Skullovitch, cultured and well learned in classical music. Who would have ever guessed? He seems to have not only played the piano, but he played HER as well.  
"So, I'll pick you up from the Youth Center at around 6 and take you to Tony's. You like pizza, right?" he asked once more. Trini gave him a stern look of disapproval.

"Well, technically you cheated." She accused. "I wouldn't have taken the bet had I had known-"

"But you didn't." Skull pointed out. "And I didn't cheat. That was more of a hustle if anything." He defended. Trini pushed her hair behind her ear.

"Regardless, a deal is a deal." She said pleasantly enough. He grinned.

"Deal's a deal." He agreed, "Besides, this may give you a chance to get to know more about me." He said giving her a wink. She rolled her eyes with a laugh. She nodded as they both stood up to leave the room.

"Okay, 6 o'clock, I'll meet you out front of the Youth Center." Trini instructed. Skull pouted, opening the door for her.

"What? You don't want me to come parading in with flowers and bragging to everyone that you're going out with me?" he asked jokingly. She laughed, shaking her head, her thick black hair swishing gently back and forth in sync with her movement.

"Please don't." she replied. She didn't mind going out with him now that he had revealed a whole new side to him that intrigued her, however, a spectacle like that would leave her positively mortified.

~~~  
Kimberly's eyes glistened as she noticed Trini walk into the Youth Center. She dismounted the balance beam and scurried over to her friend.

"Trini!" she exclaimed. "You have GOT to tell me what happened! Bulk and Skull are going to leave us alone, now, right?" she asked excitedly. Trini's troubled expression tipped Kimberly off to the truth.

"Well…" she began. Kim's mouth dropped open.

"What? What happened?" she asked, "He didn't really…"

"He did!" Trini exclaimed, "It was unlike anything I had ever heard. He's good. He's REALLY good." Trini said crossing her arms. Kimberly pondered a moment, shaking her head in disbelief. She turned to climb back onto the balance beam.

"So…are you still going out with him?" she asked. Trini sighed.

"Yes I am." She answered. "We made a bet." She stated.

"Yeah, but…it's a date with SKULL." Kimberly remarked, giving a shudder.

"I know, but…I don't know." She responded. "I made a promise." Trini knew she wasn't giving the full truth to her best friend, but she was afraid Kimberly wouldn't understand. Skull's piano playing had entranced her somehow. The boy was clearly deeper than they knew. Perhaps the obnoxious tough guy attitude was all an act. The more she thought about it, she really didn't know much about Skull, especially if how people saw him was all a façade. 'One night with him, may be interesting.' She reasoned with herself.

"Wait 'til the guys hear about this." Kimberly said going into a handstand.

"Please don't tell anyone, Kim. I don't want anyone to know about this." Trini begged. 

It was nearly 5:30 and Trini had felt quite satisfied with the amount kung fu practice she had gotten in. Trini gathered her things and went into the locker room to quickly shower off. After her quick shower, she got dressed and blow-dried her hair. She flipped out her hair and looked herself over the mirror. Her outfit was really nothing special. It was just a yellow and white shirt on top of a dark pair of bell bottom jeans and white sneakers. The teen started to think maybe she should've gone home to change and have Skull pick her up from her house. Trini looked at the clock. It was five 'til six. It was far too late now. She quickly picked up her bag and headed back out into the main center floor.

Kimberly was already sitting at a table near Ernie's Juice Bar with Jason, Zack, and Billy. They were all drinking smoothies and laughing about something. Trini prayed Kim hadn't told them about her situation. She jogged over to let them know she had to cut out early.

"Hey, Trini!" Billy said cheerfully, "Bought you your favorite protein smoothie." He offered, handing her the tall, chilled glass. She felt bad. Trini would've loved to stay and hang out with her friends.

"Aw, thank you, but I'm going to have to get this to go." She explained, taking the glass. Ernie had overheard and already set a Styrofoam cup on the counter. The group simultaneously protested against her leaving and insisted she stay with them. "I'm sorry, guys." She apologized, carefully pouring the chunky contents into the cup. "I have to meet up with someone tonight." She said off-handedly, tapped the edge of the glass gently making sure all of the smoothie was in the to-go cup. Trini handed the glass off to Ernie.

"You sure you have to go out?" Ernie asked with a kind smile. Trini smiled back.

"Oh, I wish I could." She replied apologetically, "I made a promise, though." She went to leave, giving a quick wave as she left, "I'll see you guys tomorrow!" she shouted, heading out the main entrance and into the lobby. Trini pushed through the glass door leading outside. The cool night air hit her face.  
Just then, a tan Buick pulled up at the curb and someone was getting out the driver's seat. Skull.

Trini was flustered. Clearly, he was taking this date rather seriously. His hair was nicely combed back, rather than plastered to his head with styling gel. Instead of his usual disastrous wardrobe, he was sporting a well-fitted black blazer over a tan button-down shirt, and a hole-less pair of dark jeans. Underneath the cuffs of his jeans could she just see the bright yellow toes of his favorite beat-in Doc Marten boots. Okay, so he wasn't completely dressed like a proper gentleman, but she was admittedly touched by his effort. He smiled at her, concealing something behind his back as he approached.

"Well, you certain clean up nice." She complimented.

"Yeah, well, you know, I try." He replied, handing her a simple bouquet of yellow daisies. She looked at him in genuine astonishment. Warmth had grown in his face.

"Oh! Skull…" she said taking them carefully. "That's…that's incredibly sweet." She commented. He shrugged coolly.

"Ah, think nothin' of it." He said playing off his polite gesture. "Shall we?" he said opening the passenger side door and presenting her the open seat.

"Indeed we shall." She replied playing along sliding onto the tan leather seat. "Thank you." He closed the door and travelled around the front of the car, opening the driver side door and sitting down behind the wheel.

Trini couldn't help but take in her current surroundings in the old Buick. It was nothing special. It was free of garbage, though there was quite a build-up of dirt and crumps in the corners of the carpet. There was also the definite possibility that most of the surfaces would feel sticky. The boy took notice of her searching around the car.

"My dad let me borrow his car for tonight, I know it's not much, but I made sure to clean it out for you." Skull explained as he pulled them out of the Youth Center parking lot.

"Well, thank you." She replied greatly appreciating Skull taking the initiative to throw out whatever was previously housed in the vehicle. She didn't dare to imagine what the car looked like before he came to pick her up.

The car ride itself was awkwardly silent for the first moment or two, save for the sad whirring and chunking of the air conditioning. Suddenly, Skull cleared his throat.

"Say," he started. "You don't mind if I turn on some music do you?" he asked.

"No, not at all." She insisted, happy to have relief from the suffocating silence. Without another second of hesitation, the boy turned on the radio and pressed a button turning on the tape deck. Classical music filled the car. Trini had half expected punk rock to start blaring. They both sat enjoying the short piece until it concluded. There was a pause before a guitar intro screamed, joined in by a wail of the vocalist. Trini jumped, startled by the sudden change. Skull quickly turned the volume way down with a laugh.

"Sorry, I forgot it was a mix tape." He apologized. She placed a hand over her chest and laughed.

"Very mixed." She added. That was the kind of music she expected to be blaring in his car. She was right, for the most part. Finally they pulled up in front of the small restaurant, where they both climbed out of the car. Skull smiled pleasantly, smacking his gum as he held open the door for Trini.

Tony's, although not a high end restaurant actually appeared to be a nice Italian place. The lighting was dim, small votive candles sat in the middle of each of the checker cloth-covered tables.

"Hi guys. Welcome to Tony's!" a cute perky hostess greeted the teens. "Table for two?" she asked grabbing a few menus.

"Yeah." Skull confirmed. "Me and this lovely lady here." He added. The hostess smiled.

"Alright, right this way." She said leading them to a clean booth near the back. She set each menu on either side of the table as the two settled down in their seats.

"Okay, guys, your waitress will be with you shortly." The hostess assured, leaving them alone.

"Thank you." Trini replied to the girl. Skull took a breath, glancing around the restaurant.

"Well, I hope you like this place." He said, resting his arms on the table. "Tony's has some of the BEST pizza EVER." He emphasized. Trini leaned in, resting on the table.

"Do you come here often?" she asked.

"I haven't been here in quite awhile." He answered. "Truth be told, the pizza is great, but the prices…I only come out here on special occasion and when I take a gorgeous girl for a night on the town." He said suavely, raising an eyebrow. His gum smacking however, killed his attempt at appearing charming. Trini chuckled.

"So it's been a VERY long time." She joked. Skull pulled back pretending to be deeply hurt by her jab as she softly laughed.

"Right in the heart, Trini!" he dramatically sat back, clutching his chest. "Have you no compassion for this poor loser's feelings?" he continued, a small smile tugging at the edge of his lips. Trini reached across the table.

"You're not a loser." She assured. Skull's smile faded as he looked down. Trini was confused until she saw what he was looking at. She hadn't realized that she was gently resting her hand on his. Both teens blushed and Trini carefully pulled her hand back. She readjusted her hair behind her ear as Skull awkwardly cleared his throat.

"Hi guys, my name is Brandy. I'll be your waitress this evening." Brandy introduced breaking the odd air of tension between the two sitting at the table. "Is there anything I can get you, water, iced tea?" she offered bringing out a pen and pad from her waist belt pouch.

"Iced tea with lemon would be great, thank you." Trini ordered.

"Uh, yeah, I'll have a cherry coke, please." Skull requested. Brandy jotted down their order.

"Iced tea lemon and a cherry coke." She repeated. "Okay, I'll be right back with your drinks." She smiled. The teens thanked her, both now unsure of what to say to one another as they flipped open their menus. It was Skull that broke the silence.

"Did you just want to share a pizza? They're pretty big." He suggested.

"Sure. Especially if they have 'the BEST pizza EVER'." She replied, easing his clear tension with a smile. He chuckled, relaxing into his seat.

"Tell me more about yourself, Skull." Trini asked. Skull closed his menu in front of him and folded his hands on the table.

"Well, whatdya want to know?" he asked curiously wondering what she wanted to find out about him and why.

"Well," she began before she was interrupted by Brandy bringing them their drinks.

"Here you are, guys." Brandy said placing their drinks down in front of them. "One iced tea with lemon and a cherry coke." Both Skull and Trini thanked her before she pulled out her pad and pen, "Are we about ready to order, or do you need a little more time?" she asked.

"Nah, I think we're ready." Skull informed her, "We wanted to do the single." He looked at Trini, "Just cheese? Do you want any toppings?" he asked her. Trini shook her head and looked up at Brandy.

"Just cheese is fine." She ordered.

"A single cheese. Would you guys like some breadsticks in meantime?" she offered.

"That'd be great, thanks." Skull thanked. Brandy gave a nod.

"Great! I'll be right back with the bread." She informed leaving them once more. Skull pulled his was of gum out of his mouth and took a pink packet of sweetener. He smooshed the gum, folding the sweetener packet over it and set it casually off to the side. Trini was relieved he didn't just stick his gum to the cloth napkin.

"Anyway." Trini spoke regaining her train of thought. "Your piano playing, honestly Skull was amazing." She complimented. "Are you looking to making a career out of it?" she inquired. He shook his head.

"Nah." He answered, "I mean, I could easily make some money on the side playing in the shopping mall or some kid's bar mitzvah or something, but," he made a cringed expression, "neh…I don't really know what I wanna do yet." He answered truthfully. Skull had never really given his future much thought. His failing grades and his opt to constantly get in trouble had made him believe he didn't really have much chance for a future. "Enough about me. I'm a dull topic." He stated plainly.

"You're anything, but dull." She reassured shaking her head, "In fact, your piano playing shows there's this whole other part of you that I don't know—"

"Eh, I'm loud and annoying, but I play classical in private." Skull shot back. "There's not much depth to me. I. Am as shallow as a kiddie pool and about at complicated as a balloon." Before she could respond, Brandy had returned with the bread.

"Enjoy guys! Your pizza should be ready soon." She assured the two before she left to tend to another table.

"You're more than that, Skull." Trini said. "I can tell." Her dark almond eyes locked with his and she had never realized just how blue his eyes were. They were a sky blue with a splash of green. Guess she had never really noticed before just as he had never looked closely at the color in her eyes. Her eyes were a dark brown, rich and warm as a cup of coffee that Skull was easily drinking up.

"Anyway, you really could make a career out of your talent. Your playing is beautiful." Trini implored.

"There are more beautiful things I'd rather talk about." He said, not breaking his eye contact, "I want to talk more about you." He confessed, her cheeks burning up at his smooth compliment. This side. This was genuine, compassionate side of the boy she desperately wanted to get to know. They spent the rest of the evening sharing their pizza, which Trini did agree was some of the best she'd ever had, share experiences, and talk about their families.

Skull's dad had his own motorcycle repair shop, his mom a hair stylist. Trini's father was a corporate executive to a big name company oversees, while her mother stayed at home, involving herself in volunteer work whenever she could. Neither of them had any brothers or sisters, however Trini had an extensive family in Vietnam and a cousin that lived just an hour outside Angel Grove.

Skull was just finishing a story before they received the bill for their dinner.  
"Well, after a VERY long shouting match, my dad finally puts soap in the dishwasher," the teens laughing as Skull recounted a story, "it was a few minutes later I heard mom scream, I ran down stairs to find our entire kitchen filled with suds!" they laughed together.

"So after ALL that?" she asked, "After all that, the kitchen still got ruined!" Trini confirmed. Skull nodded.

"Yup! After all that." He chuckled, "Boy was my mom mad!"

"How did we enjoy everything?" Brandy asked, placing the check on the table in front of them.

"It was excellent, thank you!" Trini replied.

"Still the best pizza in town!" Skull added. Brandy giggled.

"Well, good! Well, thank you for dining with us tonight, and we hope to see you at Tony's real soon, okay?" Brandy said leaving them with the check. Trini rummaged through her purse and brought out her wallet.  
"Hey hey hey hey." Skull put a hand out to stop her, already putting money into the leather booklet. "I got this covered."

"Are you sure? I really don't mind-"

"No no no. The bet was to go on a date with me, not for you to pay for it." Skull insisted.

"Well," Trini said putting her wallet back into her purse, "How about I pay for our second date and call it even?" she suggested.

"What second date?" Skull asked, not initially understanding what Trini was suggesting. The gears cranked hard in Skull's head until it clicked, a smile growing on his face. "Oh! Really?" he asked happily. "Do you want to do something like this again or what?"

"I would like that. There's a restaurant in Downtown Angel Grove that has really good Tai food." Trini suggested.

"How does tomorrow afternoon sound?" Skull asked. "It's early release Friday cause the dumb prep rally thing, we can go straight from school to the restaurant." He reasoned.

"Sounds great!" she exclaimed, pleased with the plan. The two got up and headed back out to the car.

"Want I should drive you home?" Skull asked, starting the car.

"Yeah, it's a little too late to drive me back to the Youth Center. It'd be closed by now." Trini pointed out as she read her watch 9pm. She couldn't believe they'd been out for 3 hours together. She was in even further disbelief at just how well the night had been. It had gone so well in fact, that she WANTED to see him again.

Trini glanced over wanting to catch a glimpse of those blue eyes of his again. He could see her looking at him out of his peripheral. He flashed her a quick glance and smiled. The two chuckled.

He pulled up to the front of her house, the large front room window glowing.

"Thanks for losing the bet, Trini." Skull teased with a smug grin. She gave him a playful shove.

"You're welcome, you cheater!" she joked.

"So, tomorrow after school?" he laughed. She laughed with him before suddenly planting a kiss on his cheek. His laughing stopped abruptly, and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Tomorrow after school." She agreed, climbing out of the car, her purse and small duffel in hand. Skull touched his cheek where she had kissed him, a small smile spreading on his face. She shut the passenger door and gave a wave. She quickly jogged up to her front door and gave him another wave once she opened the door and disappeared inside.

Once the door shut, the punk let out an embarrassingly high squeal of delight that thankfully no one could hear. 


	3. The Problem

_**Chapter 3: The Problem**_

The next day at school, Trini was chatting with her friends about this and that, mostly about their plans for Zack's surprise birthday party coming up.

"We should start heading to homeroom." Billy suggested.

"You guys go ahead, Trini and I will be there in a minute." Kimberly told them. Billy and Jason headed toward Mrs. Appleby's classroom just up the hall. Kimberly whipped around to face Trini, "So? SPILL! How'd the date go?" she pressed, "Was it just awful?" she asked ready to hear the worse.

"Actually, it wasn't that bad." Trini said withholding the full truth. In truth, it was a great date and she had grown rather fond of the boy. The problem was that she wasn't sure what it was she was truly feeling for him. It was just then that she started wondering, was she really feeling something romantic for Skull?

"Not that bad? You went on a date with SKULL and it 'wasn't that bad?" Kimberly asked trying to wrap her mind around such an outlandish concept. "Well, tell me everything! Where did you go? What did you do?" she hounded. Trini understood that her friend was curious, but the last thing she wanted was for her best friend to carry on about a single date, just because she had said date with Eugene Skullovitch of all people.

"Look, it was nothing. We got pizza and he took me home." Trini said. "It really was no big deal." She assured the spunky brunette.

"No big deal?" Kimberly pressed further. "Come on! Did he make a scene? Did he embarrass you?"

"No. Surprisingly, he was actually very polite." Trini informed. She grabbed her textbook from her locker and began walking to homeroom.

"Morning, ladies!" Bulk proclaimed from behind them, Skull at his side.

"Ladies." Skull chimed in smacking his gum as usual. He and Trini briefly locked eyes before Bulk pushed past them, his best friend following suit, looking Kimberly and Trini up and down almost hungrily. Trini cringed back. She knew this attitude was an act, but she did not like it one bit, for her or for Kimberly's sake.

"Ugh, I can't believe you actually went out with him." Kimberly said, going in the classroom after them.

"Neither can I." Trini replied meekly. How was she going to explain to Kimberly or her friends about this second date? She could tell them she had to meet with someone downtown. She didn't necessarily need to tell them who or why, so it wasn't really a lie. These thoughts ran through her head all day, she could hardly stay focused in class. It didn't help that she shared most of her classes with Bulk and Skull who always caused some sort of disruption. This was something she figured they'd need to discuss when she met with him later after the prep rally.

As the dismissal for the assembly rang,

BEEP BEEP BEE-DEE BEEP BEEP, a small beeping emitted from Trini's wrist.

'Zordon. Oh no. Skull.' Trini realized feeling painfully guilty as she and her friends gathered in an isolated corner.

"Go ahead Zordon." Jason quietly hailed through his communicator.

"Rangers," the deep voice of their mentor relayed through the com-link, "Rita Repulsa has released a new monster in downtown Angel Grove." He reported.

"We're on it." The red ranger assured. He looked amongst the rest of the team and shared a nod. Trini's heart wrenched. She had no way to tell Skull that she may not able to meet with him for their date. She just had to hope he wouldn't be too disappointed. She would simply have to come up with an excuse for him later. Right now, the city was in danger and as the yellow ranger, protecting the people of earth was top priority. "Let's go guys! It's MORPHIN' TIME!"

~~~

The pep rally was nothing spectacular. It was just the principal going on about how Angel Grove High's football team was going to have a victorious win Saturday night. Skull's leg bounced impatiently as he sat counting the minutes until this thing was over. He adjusted his red beret and looked down to make sure his grey camo pants were free of any unsightly food stains or the like. Fortunately he was clean. Bulk felt his seat vibrating and looked around for the cause. He saw Skull's leg bouncing rapidly and slapped hand hard down on his knee to stop his irritating movement.

"Stop it." His larger friend hissed.

"Sorry." Skull apologized, but before long, his leg was back at it as he stared desperately at the slowly ticking clock. 'Just another minute or two-' "OW!" Bulk slammed his hand down on Skull's knee even harder.

"I said, stop it Skull!" Bull said angrily.

"Ah," Skull winced in pain, grabbing his leg. With a final cheer from the students, they were finally released. Like a shot, Skull took off for the door, leaving Bulk calling after him from somewhere in the sea of students. Skull convinced his dad to let him drive himself to school so he could have the car for the afternoon for his date. He stood anxiously waiting by his car for Trini to meet him. One by one the students filed out of the gym. A good handful headed toward the bus pick up, others flagged down their parent's cars along the curb, and the rest, mostly seniors climbed into their own cars and drove out of the lot.

Skull scanned around, but there was still no sign of Trini. There was no sign of any of his own friends either.

"Skull!" Bulk bellowed from across the parking lot making his way toward him. "Why'd you run ahead like that?" he demanded.

"Sorry, Bulk, I was supposed to meet someone immediately after the assembly, but—"

"Who?" Bulk asked.

"Uh, uh," Skull stammered. He wanted to brag that he was dating Trini, but decided against it. He knew how Bulk would react. If he knew, he would tease and pester Trini, and Skull wasn't going to have that. Instead, Skull scoffed and played it off, "Eh, you know just some girl." He lied. Bulk gave him a skeptical look.

"Really?" he asked. Skull nodded.

"Yeah. Why is that so hard to believe?" Skull asked, somewhat offended by his friend's skepticism.

"Well, no offense buddy," Bulk said clasping a firm grip on Skull's shoulder, "but you're…_you_." He stated plainly. Skull scowled. He wasn't completely wrong though. The boy had a hard time believing a girl like Trini seemed genuinely interested in him, let alone ask _him_ out on a date.

"Yeah, well, I _am_ meeting up with a girl, so you better go ahead to Ernie's without me." Skull said firmly. Bulk let go of his shoulder.

"Alright then. Enjoy your 'date'." Bulk said in air quotes before heading down the block in the direction of the Youth Center alone. Skull rolled his eyes and continued to search around for Trini.

~~~

Meanwhile, the Rangers were in an intense battle. They had fought off the monster on the ground in their usual ranger fashion before Rita used her magic staff to make the monster giant. The giant creature would be no match however for the strength of the ranger's zords.

"Let's show this monster some Megazord power!" Jason ordered, pressing the activation button. The rest of the team followed suit activating mega mode within their respective zords. The mastodon, pterodactyl, triceratops, sabre tooth tiger, and the tyrannosaurus morphed together to form the all mighty Megazord.

"Power it up! Activating Megazord Attack Mode!" the red ranger commanded, placing his hands firmly on the controls of the equipped blasters.

"Megazord attack mode initiated." The system relayed as the Megazord stood in its full attack position ready to strike down the ranger's foe once and for all. "Megazord activated." The system confirmed.

"Alright, Rangers! Full Power! Let's blast this creep!" the leader commanded. The team took to their controls, powering up for a super charged ultimate attack. The charge sent a blinding flash at the monster and in a deafening explosion and shower of sparks, the monster was no more.

~~~

Skull checked the time on the clock in his car. It had been over an hour since the assembly. The students were all gone, leaving him one of the few cars still in the parking lot. He gave once last look around with a sigh. With a grunt, he smacked the hood of the Buick in hurt frustration. He opened the driver side door and got into the car, slamming his door shut. He gripped the wheel and took a breath.

"I knew it." Skull said to himself, shaking his head. He started the car as he tried to reason with himself that he shouldn't be so surprised. The whole situation was too good to be true. But the truth was there. She was nowhere to be found. She stood him up. He was just about to pull away from his parking spot when, tap, tap, tap! Skull looked to his left. Trini?

"Skull, I'm sorry!" she apologized. He rolled down the window with a frown.

"I didn't think you were going to show. What took you?" he asked, his frustration slowly subsiding.

"I uh, I had to take care of something after the assembly." She vaguely answered, "I promise, I would never stand you up. Is it too late to join you for our date?" she asked. He paused a moment, looking into her pleading eyes. He sighed. He couldn't stay mad when she gave him that desperate look. Who was he to turn away a pretty girl who ACTUALLY wanted to go out with him?

"Well, I suppose I could pencil you in." he joked, "I DO have a pretty booked schedule..." He smirked. She smiled and ran around to the other side of the car.

"Thanks, Skull. I really am sorry." She said climbing in and buckling her seatbelt.

"Eh, forget it." Skull dismissed, heading toward downtown. "I myself have been known to show up to things fashionably late." He confessed. Trini giggled. "So long as you try not to make a habit it of it." He requested with the utmost sincerity. As they headed toward downtown, still being cleaned up of debris from the earlier monster battle, Trini wondered, would she be able to make this work?

This time she just barely managed to make their date. If she continued dating Skull, it would be incredibly difficult to get away for ranger missions and keep him from knowing the truth behind her frequent disappearances. Would it be worth it? She glanced over at him, he was all smiles. She couldn't help but give her own soft smile.

Would it be worth it? She sure hoped so. 


	4. The Party

_**Chapter 4: The Party**_

Despite how well the blossoming relationship was developing, a fear that Trini hadn't quite realized had made itself abhorrently clear. This fear, however, was not related to her secret identity as the Yellow Ranger, but rather Skull's bold attitude and big mouth.

Trini and her friends were in the Youth Center after hours putting together decorations for Zack's surprise birthday party. Kimberly had finished filling a large box full of a colorful assortment of balloons, Billy was attempting to repair Ernie's slush machine, Jason hung streamers, and Trini completed hand-painting a "Happy Birthday Zack" banner.

Much to everyone's surprise, Bulk, dragging Skull in with him, barged in uninvited into the room.

"Well, well." The larger punk began, "If it isn't the nerds of Angel Grove High." He insulted. Billy timidly approached the imposing teen pointing out that the Youth Center was in fact closed. Meanwhile, Skull turned his attention to Trini's abandoned banner and thought to tease her a bit. He grabbed hold of the paper banner roughly.

"Hey, Bulky, look at what we got here!" He called. Trini, appalled reached to take back her finished project, only to have it pulled out of her grasp as Skull made a loud pop with his tongue. "A birthday party, aw!" he mocked. Trini folded her arms. She had hoped Skull wouldn't pull this bully act any more, especially towards her.

"Well, we would've invited you, but ANIMALS aren't allowed!" Kimberly replied crossly. Skull gave the small brunette a smirk as Bulk took the banner out of his friend's hands. The bully brought the banner to his face and promptly blew his nose into it. Trini's mouth dropped in exasperation, while Skull just let out his signature pitchy hyena laugh.

"Party's over, kids!" Bulk announced, feeling quite proud of himself. Trini went to grab the banner back, but was unsuccessful.

"Hey! I worked a long time on that!" She protested. She felt Skull take her wrists carefully and led her gently aside.

"Hey, hey, come on, BABE." Skull consoled rather contemptuously, "What do you say I help you paint another one? You know, after we're done having a little uh…FUN?" he offered suggestively. Trini froze, she couldn't bring herself to fight against his tender hold of her hands or even push him away. She let out a giggle when she anticipated Skull to fall over the unnoticed obstacle behind him. Fortunately, karma acted swiftly on her behalf as Skull tripped, falling backward into a large tarp and multiple buckets of paint just as she predicted. Trini took a few quick steps backward, unable to stiffen another giggle. Served him right for making such a lewd suggestion in front of all her friends.

Kimberly laughed out loud at Skull's clumsy misstep, prompting Bulk to mock her laugh before popping and ripping apart one of her balloons in her face. Jason, leaning against a nearby beam, arms crossed, spoke up.

"Someone ought to let the air out of you." He quipped. The agitated tie-dye wearing bully came charging at him, only for Jason to quickly move to the side. Bulk clanged his head into the pole and dizzily fell backward directly into Kimberly's box of balloons in a series of loud pops.

"Oh! My balloons!" Kimberly she cried in distress. Skull kicked a few buckets aside and got on his feet building himself up to take a swing at Jason himself. He bolted goofily towards the uncaring boy in red, who easily took a step to the side. The punk's head collided into the pole with an echoing clang. Dazed, Skull let out a laugh, before turning towards meeker prey, a laughing Billy Cranston standing just in front of the malfunctioning slush machine. The lanky and rather dizzy punk ran at him. Not having learned his lesson the first time, however, Billy stepped aside and pulled open the slush machine door, allowing Skull to plunge himself headfirst into the machine and an accumulated mound of light blue, foamy slush.

"I hate party crashers." Kimberly commented jokingly to Trini. The raven-haired teen laughed as Skull flung a large amount of slush off of his face onto the floor. She was ready to tell him off, but could see in his eyes that he was sorry things got out of hand. Trini just shook her head at him.

"Hey!" Ernie shouted as he emerged from the back room, "Bulk, Skull, you two aren't part of the party committee. I'm gonna have to ask you to leave." He ordered noticing the destroyed balloons and the slush dripping off of Skull and onto the floor. He eyed the boys sternly. Bulk stumbled onto his feet and turned to leave.

"Whatever. See ya later, losers." Bulk called out, grabbing hold of Skull's brown shirt and dragging him away by his shoulder.

"Yeah! Losers!" he added, speaking more directly at Billy and Jason. Before the two rounded the corner out into the main hallway, his eyes met Trini's hurt face expression. He knew he was in trouble. Were they done? His heart sank as his mind began to convince himself that surely Trini would never speak to him again.

~~~

The next day at school, Skull did his very best to avoid Trini. He knew they had to talk and he genuinely wanted to apologize, but wracked with the fear that she would scold him and solidify that they could never hang out socially as a couple, he couldn't bring himself to face her. He peeked around corners, spying on her talking with her friends. It seemed like she was dealing with her own problems in regards to Zack's birthday. Perhaps it was best not to try to talk to her while she was under the stress of keeping her friend's birthday party under wraps.

"Hey, Skull!" Bulk said, grabbing Skull's shirt front and forcing him to look him in the face while he spoke to him, "You, me, and Sharkie are still going to the arcade after school today, right?" he asked. Though this question sounded more of an order than an offer.

"Oh, right, yeah, yeah, of course!" Skull answered. Bulk smiled and patted him on the shoulder.

"Good! 'Cause I'm beatin' your high score on 'Splat a Rat'." he declared assuredly. Sharkie laughed and gave him a shove.

"Yeah, right, Bulkmier, you say that every time we go to the arcade!" she laughed. Bulk made a mocking face at her. She grinned sticking out her tongue at him. Just then the first bell rang for their final class.

"Come on! Let's get this day over with!" Bulk said stomping ahead of his two friends toward the classroom. Skull and Sharkie walked side by side at a slower pace.

"Hey, Sharkie, you're a girl…" Skull began. She gave a snarky chuckle.

"That's quite the ground-breaking observation. Good job!" she teased, looking at him. He glanced back at her being met by his own reflection in her dark, round sunglasses under her wildly spiked blonde bangs.

"No, I mean…what if I guy makes you look stupid in front of your friends?" Skull asked, "Should he call and apologize? Give her a gift-"

"First of all, I'd sock him square in the jaw." She said, punching her fingerless gloved fist into her hand, "Secondly, I would make him apologize for getting his blood on my fist." She added threateningly. A cold sweat began to form on Skull's forehead. He gulped nervously. The grunge teen grinned, "In all seriousness, though, Skull, if you mucked something up, just apologize to the girl. If you're too chicken spit to say sorry to her face, at least give her a phone call and offer to make it up to her." Sharkie instructed.

"Make it up to her how?" Skull asked. The blonde shrugged.

"I don't know, offer to buy her food or somethin'. I know if I guy bought me food, I'd forgive him. Free food." She smirked sucker-punching him hard in the arm. He gave a pained gasp, rubbing his aching arm. "Just say you're sorry, stupid!" she summed up, running ahead to get into the classroom before the tardy bell rang.

~~~

After school, the goon squad spent their quarters, and the quarters of other teens and small children, on the numerous games. All awhile, Skull couldn't seem to stop worrying about Trini and how their phone conversation would go, that is if she would even talk to him after the way he acted and the fool he had made of himself.  
After several hours of playing the gang agreed it was time to call it quits and head their own separate ways towards their homes.

"You guys want to do something tomorrow?" Bulk asked. "We can go CRASH Zack's party at the Youth Center." He suggested. Normally Skull would be ecstatic to crash a dweeb party, but he was already on such thin ice with Trini.

"Ah, I can't Bulky, I uh…promised my mom I'd help dad clean out his workshop." He lied. Bulk shrugged.

"Nah, I already made plans." She said curling her lip

"Alright, then. See you guys, Monday, then." Bulk said with a wave. The other two waved back.

"See ya, Bulky!" Skull called.

"Later, Bulk! And Skull!" Sharkie shouted walking down the street, "Remember what I told ya!" Reminding him to just call and apologize already. Skull nodded and headed straight home. He knew he had Trini's home phone number in the Student phone directory book somewhere in one of the kitchen drawers.

~~~

"Come on, Skullovitch, you can do this." Skull told himself anxiously as he stared at the phone buttons. The device hummed a loud dial tone waiting for him to finally punch in the digits of the telephone number. He looked at the number listed in the directory under "Trini Kwan Home Phone" and took a deep breath. He let out a long exhale and entered the numbers carefully.

"Boop….boop…boop," the phone rang in his ear. "Hello, thank you for calling the Kwan household. We are terribly sorry to have missed your call, but if you leave your name, telephone number, and a short message we will return your call as soon as we can. Thank you." The answering machine relayed. The voice was what Skull assumed to be Trini's father on the recording. The machine beeped indicating it was recording Skull's message.

"Uh, hiya, Trini, it's Skull…I wanted to uh, apologize for what happened the other day, so uh, if you'll give me a call back at (436) 794-2553…that'd be great…'kay…bye." He finished, placing the phone back on the receiver with a sigh. He rubbed his eyes. He didn't realize his heart had been beating so hard until after he hung up. He figured he'd have to try again later. He slumped into a seat at the kitchen table and rested his forehead against the cool wood surface.

"Eugene? Want me to make you a quesadilla or something?" he mom asked as she came into the kitchen.

He shrugged and let out a muffled groan sounding like, 'I don't know.'  
"I'm sorry we don't have much to choose from. I didn't get a chance to stop by the grocery store today." She explained, "I got caught up with the ladies today for lunch. Get this, Linda's husband finally caved and bought her her own Indian Black Hawk bike! No more having to ride that rickety Big Chief sidecar!" she chortled. Skull groaned.

A few years back his dad bought his mom a motorcycle. At first she raised a fit, 'I never wanted a motorcycle. They're so dangerous. Motorcycles are your thing. Those friends of yours, their motor-wives are crazy!' she had raved. She quickly changed her tune after he showed her how to ride it. Now she was a BIG enthusiast and insisted on telling Skull all about her time with the "ladies". Sure Skull liked motorcycles fine and knew his way around them thanks to his dad, but gossip and tales from the "ladies" was now a constant topic his mom insisted she discuss with him in great length.

"That's great, ma." He humored. She continued to prattle on about this and that involving her motorcycle gals, not taking notice that with each passing second her son was languishing, desperate to talk to his maybe girlfriend.

~~~

Skull called again, and again, but finally gave up until tomorrow morning. He knew he'd have a hard time getting a hold of her. Trini was probably getting ready for Zack's party. He gave her house phone another try, to which he only heard the familiar recording of Mr. Kwan on the answering machine. Skull decided against leaving a message. He hung up the phone and sat for a moment. Suddenly an idea struck him.

"Ernie's!" Skull shouted aloud, entering the Youth Center Extension for Ernie's Juice Bar

"Boop…Ernie's Juice Bar at the Angel Grove Youth Center, how can I help you?" Ernie's voice answered.

"Hey, Ernie, it's Skull." Skull clarified.

"What's goin' on, Skull?" Ernie asked, sounding less than thrilled, but trying his best to be polite.

"Is Trini there? It's really important that I talk to her about somethin'." Skull confessed. There was a pause as Ernie looked around. He furrowed his brow, puzzled. It was the day of Zack's surprise party, yet the kids weren't anywhere in sight.

"You know, they're not here right now, but I'll have her call you back when I see her." Ernie assured.

"Okay, thanks, Ernie. Bye." He said as he hung up the phone. "Not at the Youth Center?" Skull asked himself aloud. He looked up at the black cat clock on the wall, it's eyes and tail clicking back and forth. Its face read 11 o'clock. The gang should at least be there beginning to set up for the party, right? Or maybe…maybe Trini told Ernie to lie for her and she was really there, but didn't want to talk to him.

With a disappointed sigh, Skull walked out of the kitchen and upstairs to his bedroom. He closed the door behind him and sat down at his electric keyboard. He flipped on the power and began to mess around with a series of chords until he settled on playing Satie's Gymnopédie No.1. It was a simple enough piece he'd memorized around his freshman year. Despite its simplicity, it's tone and melody expressed his feelings perfectly.

It seemed silly to think Trini really never wanted to speak to him ever again, but he couldn't blame her if it were true. To someone on the outside of the situation, they may see it as such an insignificant mistake, but to Eugene Skullovitch, his obsession over the incident made his error seem grander than it really was.

Regardless, he played the melancholy tune and allowed himself to get lost in the music and attempt to slip away from his guilty thoughts and the memory of his blunder on infinite repeat in his mind.

Little did he know, Trini wanted to speak to him about the incident, too, but she had her hands full. Not only did she and her friends need to scramble to decorate the Youth Center for the party, but the Rangers were also preoccupied with fighting off a giant Black Knight monster with their power sword. Once again, Skull would have to take a backseat to her secret life defending the city.


	5. The Waiting

_**Chapter 5: The Waiting**_

Trini's bedside alarm clock blared that Sunday morning. She groggily rolled over in bed and flipped off the alarm. The room fell silent and she rubbed her eyes. She sat up, her long black hair a disheveled mess. She groaned, stretching out her arms before getting up to change out of her pajamas and brush her teeth and hair. She made her way to the bathroom and flipped on the bright lights over her mirror.

The party the day before had gone perfectly, but between the monster fight and the party running late into the night, Trini was exhausted. Looking at herself in the mirror, her tired eyes gave away how physically worn down she really was.

'Maybe I should've just stayed in bed.' Trini thought as she picked up her hairbrush and began running it through her long dark hair to combat the tangled mass.

"Trini, ling 'ài!" Trini's mother called. "Are you awake?" she asked just as Trini finished fixing her hair.

"I'm awake!" Trini replied.

"There were a few messages on the answering machine for you. Some boy kept trying to call you since Friday. Said his name was…'Skull' and that it was something important…" he mother explained. Trini dropped her brush in the sink and hurried out her bedroom door to listen to the message. They kept the answering machine by a telephone in the hallway, between the living room and the front door.

'Oh Skull. I completely forgot…' Trini cursed herself, going through the answering machine tape to find his message.

"Uh, hiya, Trini, it's Skull…" the recording ran, "I wanted to uh, apologize for what happened the other day, so uh, if you'll give me a call back at (436) 794-2553…that'd be great…'kay…bye." The recording concluded. The machine beeped and the next message from him started.

"Hey, Trini, me again…Skull. I uh, really want to talk to you, uh, my number is (436) 794-2553, so uh, call me back when you can. Bye." The machine beeped concluding the second recording before rolling into the third and final message.

"Hey, Trini, me again, callin' to see if you were around to talk…I mean I know you got the party today…but uh, if you get a chance, I'm not doin' anythin' tonight, even if you wanted to call back late, I left you my number but, it's (436) 794-2553…anyway, hope you have fun at Zack's party. Hope we can talk soon. Bye." Beep, 'End of messages' the answering machine indicated.

Trini picked up a pen resting beside the answering machine and scrawled his digits on a nearby pad of paper. She ripped the small page off the pad and took it with her to her room. She thought it best to call him from her private bedroom phone, so she didn't run the risk of her parents eavesdropping on her conversation through another phone.

Trini shut her door and sat down on her bed. She picked up the translucent yellow cordless phone off the charging base and entered the numbers. As the phone began to ring, she glanced over at the clock. It was only a little past 9 o'clock.

'Hopefully, I'm not waking him. Maybe I should've waited to call him later.' She thought. The phone stopped ringing as she could hear the phone on the other end being picked up.

"Skullovitch residence." A woman's voice answered. Trini guessed it was Skull's mom.

"Hi, um, I was wondering if Skull was around?" Trini inquired. "Tell him it's Trini." She added.

"Sure, just a moment, hon." Mrs. Skullovitch assured. Trini could hear the mouth piece on the other end being muffled by her hand, "Skull, Trini's on the phone for you!" she called. There was a pause before Skull's voice came over the phone.

"Hey, Trini. Wasn't sure if you were going to call me back." He admitted.

"No, I'm sorry." Trini apologized, "Zack's party kept us busy, especially having to replace the balloons and the banner that you guys ruined." She added coldly. Skull sighed.

"Look, I'm really sorry about that…" Skull said sincerely, "Trini, aside from calling to apologize, I was hopin' we could meet up alone and really…talk things out…about us." He confessed.

"I want to talk about that too." She replied. "But, yes, in person would be much better." She pondered when she would be free next. It would be too hard to get away during school. "I'm busy this afternoon, but the carnival is this weekend if-"

"Trini?" her mother asked, knocking on the door before opening it. Seeing her daughter on the phone she apologized. "Sorry to interrupt, but I wanted to remind you that your Aunt and Uncle are visiting this week, and I would really appreciate it if you would babysit your cousin Sylvia this weekend."

Shoot. Cousin Sylvia. Trini had completely forgotten. Alone time to talk to Skull would just have to wait…

"That's fine, mom." Trini smiled. "Actually, could I bring Sylvia to the Carnival with me and my friends?" she asked.

"So long as you two, ABSOLUTELY stay together." He mother stressed. "I'll have to get the final say from your Aunt, but it should be alright. Anyway, I'll let you get back to your phone call." She said backing out of the room and closing the door.

"Trini?" Skull asked, disheartened having already heard the conversation between Trini and her mother.

"Yeah, sorry, I forgot that I have to babysit my little cousin this weekend." Trini explained.

"No, no. It's fine. I understand." He said sounding defeated. "Well, you have my number, just uh…let me know when you're free, we can make somethin' happen."

"Okay. I'll let you know." Trini replied. There was a long pause between them before Skull spoke again.

"Trini…" he was going to apologize for being such a jerk and the image he puts on at school and around town, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Bulk would never let him live it down if he knew his best friend were to start acting nice to the "dweebs". "…I'll see ya around." He finished.

"O-okay. Bye." Trini said finally hanging up the phone. She could have sworn he was going to say more, but she supposed not. She put her hands over her face and sighed. She couldn't tell if she was really developing feelings for him, but his attitude toward her and her friends made it so difficult.

Skull hung up the phone on his end and rested his head against the door frame in the kitchen.

'Idiot! You really like this girl and you can't admit it! You can't bring yourself to change? Why not? Isn't she worth it? OF COURSE SHE IS! But my image…Bulk, Sharkie, they would never quit makin' fun of me for dating one of the dweebs. And the dweebs, Kimberly, Jason, Zack…Billy…Billy, that…that back-stabbin'…They would never accept Trini and I. Not that I want or need those losers' approval anyways!' he argued with himself. 'I guess I'll just…wait for her to decide where we go from here.'


	6. The Rescue

_**Chapter 6: The Rescue**_

Only a month had gone by between the two teens, but somehow it felt much longer since they shared their phone call. Things were awkward whenever the two were in the same room. She always seemed to be with her friends. He didn't even feel comfortable trying to even fake flirt with Trini anymore. By his own reasoning, he didn't want to upset her further…so he reverted his attention back to Kimberly as he had before he and Trini made that fateful bet back in September. He hoped that by doing so, Trini would pick up the subtle gesture of 'I'm only pretending to flirt with your best friend because I respect you.'

It wasn't until a new guy prone to wear all green moved to Angel Grove and seemed to become Kimberly's new guardian. It was harder for Skull to tease Kimberly with that "hunky" teen martial arts expert Tommy Oliver around. His innocent tone of voice and pretty boy appearance weren't quite intimidating on the surface, but when he bust out his moves, particularly his spin kicks, he was obviously a force to be reckoned with.

Trini could see Skull getting frustrated whenever Tommy would come to Kimberly's rescue, and would just shake her head at his pitiful attempts to get arise out of her friends. This bully wasn't the boy she had started to fall for. As far as she was concerned, any feelings she had for him were gone.

The two knuckleheads walked out the school along with the other freed high schoolers. Bulk glanced over at his buddy, able to tell that he seemed down.

"Hey, man, you okay?" he asked. Skull gave a shrug. "Hey, that Oliver kid, is a push over! Kimberly doesn't know a fine catch when she sees one." He said. Skull perked up, surprised by his friend's kindness.

"Yeah?" he smiled, "Thanks Bulky, I needed that encouragement." He said shoving him playfully.

"What? NO, I was talking about me, pea-brain." Bulk clarified.

"Oh." Skull frowned, looking back down at his feet.

"I mean, what's TAMMY got that I don't got huh?" Bulk continued, "I know plenty of deadly karate moves," he said giving a not so intimidating kick, "I'm in great shape…why I'm just as good lookin' as that goody good." He stated proudly shaking back his head. Skull looked him up and down.

"Where?" Skull asked giving a quizzical look. Bulk glared at him and grabbed him roughly by the shirt front as they continued to walk.

"Look, we're going for ice cream at Ernie's, YOUR TREAT." Bulk declared.

Once they arrived at the Angel Grove Youth Center and settled at the bar, the boys ordered two vanilla sundaes. Skull was incredibly grateful that his buddy wasn't looking to ordering all the ice cream Ernie had in stock. Bulk dived into his sundae, all smiles and not a care in the world, meanwhile, the skinnier punk to his left was just sort of poking at his dessert.

It was strange. He and Trini were sort of thing until she suddenly decided to stop talking to him, then one day out of the blue, _Kimberly_ asked him out and stood him up, and now neither girl wanted anything to do with him. He never thought he and Kimberly could really have something, but…Trini. As the ice cream slowly melted before his eyes, he wondered if he still had a chance with her, or if she even cared about him.

All of a sudden the building started shaking violently, sending the teens around them into a panic. They all looked around in alarm. Ernie stood up.

"Everyone, the building's falling down. Evacuate the building!" he ordered. Everyone quickly rushed out the main doors in a frenzy. Skull got up and attempted to leave, but Bulk, not looking away from his half-finished ice cream, grabbed him by the shoulder and forced him back in his seat.

"We're not leaving." Bulk said firmly. Skull looked at him in disbelief.

"B-But, the building's falling down." He argued fearfully.

"I'm not finished with my ice cream." He stated matter-of-factly despite the obvious danger, taking another large bite of ice cream. Skull sat beside his friend obediently, drumming his fingers on the counter anxiously. He desperately wanted to run, but he knew couldn't just leave his best friend behind to get crushed. As if on cue, a large wood beam fell onto the counter, making Skull jump. Bulk's eyes went wide, now fully aware of the seriousness of their situation. "I'm done. Let's go!" he said scrambling clumsily out of his barstool and running toward the exit with Skull by his side.

As they ran out, they spotted an abandoned bus parked outside the Youth Center.

"Come on! We got to get out of here as fast as possible!" Bulk reasoned, running onto the bus. Skull shook his head in amazement.

"B-But Bulk—" Skull shouted after him, climbing up the bus steps.

"You have a license, drive us out of here, Skull!" he ordered, sitting down in the first row seat. Skull instinctively sat in the drivers' seat.

"But, Bulk, I've never driven a bus-"

"Just do it!" Bulk hollered, leaning toward him. Skull didn't want to add "stealing a charter bus" to his list of criminal acts he's committed, but it was an emergency situation. Plus, the keys were still in the ignition. It was as if the bus was just begging to be stolen, he rationalized. It wasn't until he turned the keys starting the bus' engine and began to pull out onto the main street that he thought, 'I don't know what I'm so worried about. I drive dad's car all the time. How different could it really be?'

However, the large size of the bus was throwing him off and making Skull swerve along the stretch of road. Bulk was quickly beginning to feel sick.

"How'm I doing back there, Bulky?" Skull asked rather proud that he hadn't crashed into anything yet. "No one even taught me how to drive this thing!" he laughed.

"You're driving like a maniac!" Bulk yelled, now very regretful of his decision making Skull drive them.

Suddenly, the ground shook harder, making Skull grip the wheel and try to maintain control. He grunted, steering this way and that trying not to completely lose control of the vehicle. Out of nowhere, a giant gold-armor clad monster, Goldar, laughed and picked up the bus tight in its clutches.

"Bulky!" Skull screamed, holding onto the bus for dear life.

"Hang on, Skull!" Bulk called back, clutching to his seat, terrified.

Meanwhile, on the ground, the Power Rangers ran onto the scene, immediately noticing the bus in Goldar's grip. The team heard the screams coming from the bus.

"No! They're civilians!" Jason remarked in alarm. Goldar let out an evil bellowing laugh.

"Yes! I know!" He replied, turning the bus over in his hands, "Actually, they're friends of yours! I believe you call them Bulk and Skull!" he revealed, laughing manically. Immediately, the team took their stand ready to fight. Time seemed to stop for Trini upon hearing Skull was in great dangerous.

'No.' she thought in panic. Her visor focused in on the inside of the bus. She looked on in horror as she watched Skull scream for help, trying to hold onto anything in the bus's interior. She and the punk may have been in a complicated place in their relationship, but in that exact moment she realized that she didn't know what she would do if she were to lose him. He needed her just as she needed him. After this battle she knew they needed to finally have their overdue talk. They _would _ talk. Failure in rescuing both him and Bulk was _not_ an option.

"Put 'em down, Goldar!" Jason demanded.

"Not until you surrender, Rangers!" the beast challenged, continuing to turn the bus over, rolling Bulk and Skull around inside. Then, riding in through the sky on a broom, Goldar's master, the evil sorceress, Rita Repulsa cackled.

"Take them to the beach, Goldar!" she ordered her minion. Goldar laughed in turn and headed toward the shore front.

"No!" Trini involuntarily cried out reaching out to the direction of the bus.

"We have to save them!" The red ranger yelled. The team immediately teleported themselves to the beach and desperately began to search around for any sign of Goldar and the bus.

"Hello, Rangers!" cried Rita from atop a nearby cliff. "What took you so long?" Beside her stood the deadly Scorpina, one of Rita's many powerful and dangerous allies, blade drawn.

"There she is!" Zack pointed in the direction of the foes, "Come down here and-"

"Wait a minute!" Kimberly looked around them, "Where's the bus?"

"I'll help you with that!" Rita answered. "It's over there!" she cackled pointing toward another cliff. The bus was placed precariously on the edge and being pushing back and forth by a horde of putties.

On the bus, Bulk and Skull laid on the floor, holding on for dear life.

"What are we gonna do?" Skull asked.

"Let's get out of here!" Bulk suggested. Skull nodded.

"Great idea." But before the boys could try to make their escape, several putties pressed themselves up against the doors of the bus, gurgling at them. The two let out a simultaneous cry for help.

"We have to do something!" Trini cried clutching her yellow sabretooth helmet, growing more and more fearful for the boys' safety.

"The bus could go over any minute!" Kimberly added. What the rangers couldn't see was that the putties and two of Rita's other minions, Baboo and Squatt were pushing the bus slowly forward using two large fallen palm tree trucks hoisted underneath the vehicle.

The boys inside the precariously parked vehicle continued to cry out feeling the bus moving closer and closer over the edge to their doom.

"Aahh! We're going over the edge!" Skull cried anxiously.

"We're going to be history!" Bulk added, on the verge of tears. Skull stopped and looked at Bulk with bewilderment.

"You mean we're going to be famous?" he asked dim-wittedly. Bulk was about to let out another cry, but slowly looked to his friend in frustration.

"No, I mean like we're going to be dust!" he clarified, irritated. The boys' eyes went wide as the bus gave a slight jolt and let out another simultaneous scream. Skull's volume escaladed as the putties continued pushing on the sides of the bus, jostling the vehicle further. Having heard enough of Skull's obnoxious and ineffective hollering, Bulk covered his friend's mouth with his hand.

"Stop screaming, stop moving!" he said trying to keep him calm, perhaps to make their final moments more somber and relaxed. "We're going over." He noted. Skull's eyes stung with tears.

"Yeah…We're going over." He repeated in understanding, giving a salute to seemingly no one in particular, shutting his eyes tight, and awaiting his demise. The bus began to really teeter perilously over the cliffs' rocky ledge.

"Look! They're almost over the edge!" Kimberly shouted, grabbing Jason's arm begging for his command. Trini gripped the sides of her helmet once more as large rocks near the top of the cliff gave way and tumbled far onto the rocky bottom below.

"Oh no!" Trini cried.

"We've got to get up there somehow!" Jason yelled.

"But if we go up there, they'll push it over for sure!" Kimberly explained.

"They'll go over anyway! Let's go!" Jason ordered his team. The crew burst into a run up the beach toward the tottering bus. The Rangers had forgotten one important thing,

"Oh no, it's Goldar again!" Zack pointed. They had forgotten Goldar, still towering above them thanks to Rita's magic, and still around ready to fight. He drew his sword with a roar. He plunged the immense weapon into the sand attempting to destroy them. He pulled the sword free lunged his sword at them once more. Rita laughed mockingly.

"Hahaha! Don't forget the bus!" she reminded the Rangers.

"That's it! We need MEGAZORD POWER! NOW!" Jason and the rest of the Rangers shouted, summoning their zords. The large mechanical companions came running to assist. Rita grinned viciously.

"Ah! Here come the Zords! Send the bus over once and for all!" she ordered. Baboo and Squatt nodded excitedly as they gave a hard push on the palm trunks, pushing the bus further and further toward destruction. But the Rangers were ready. They turned their systems online and powered up their respective power crystals.

"Alright! Let's move out!" The red ranger exclaimed. "Let's show them Megazord power!" The zords morphed and came together to form the Megazord. Just as the Megazord boomed, "Megazord power activated", the bus finally began to plummet down the side of the cliff, Bulk and Skull screaming inside.

Just before the bus hit the ground, the Megazord caught it and gently placed it safely on the plateau far away from the side. Bulk and Skull looked around in shock.

"Are, are we alive?" Bulk asked with a smile. Skull looked perplexed, unsure of how to answer.

"I don't know…Let's find out." He said before turning and pinching Bulk's cheek hard.

"OW!" Bulk exclaimed.

"Did you feel that?" Skull asked waiting for confirmation from his pal. Bulk scowled pulling back a fist, ready to sock him. Skull put up his hands in defense. "W-we're alive!" he said joyously reminding Bulk that they were in fact both out of harms' way. Bulk's anger quickly faded as he realized Skull was right.

"We're alive!" he laughed, sharing a fist pound with Skull, ecstatic and overjoyed to have been saved by the power rangers. Their laughter stopped when they both realized how they had been brought back to safety in the first place. "The Power Rangers!" they exclaimed, clamoring to the bus window to watch the fight from a safe distance.

Now that the boys were safe, the Megazord led Goldar away from the cliff to deal with him thusly. The Rangers were beating the beast down. He was losing fast and Rita wasn't going to tolerate failure with her plan. With the toss of her staff, she enlarged Scorpina. Despitenow being outnumbered, the two were still no match for the Megazord and the might of the megasword. The Rangers were still holding strong.

"Time to call upon THE GREEN RANGER!" Rita proclaimed summoning the mysterious green ranger. "Now, green ranger, GROW!" she shrieked, throwing her staff once more allowing the green ranger to grow, matching the size of the Megazord.

In a cloud of smoke the green ranger emerged, laughing darkly, sword in hand.

"Whoa!" Bulk exclaimed, "A giant green ranger!" The boys watched on eagerly, but they quickly grew worried as Scorpina wrapped the Megazord with her scorpion-like tail and the green ranger went in for the kill. In a series of sparks and explosions, the ground opened up, and the Megazord began to plunge into the molten magma below.

The Rangers ejected out of the machine just in time to avoid getting swallowed by the lava along with the Megazord.

"Skull, get us out of here!" Bulk said scrambling back to his seat. Skull nodded vigorously and he too ran and plopped back into the drivers' seat.

"You said it, Bulky!" In a quick twist of the keys, the engine roared to life. With a squeal from the tires, Skull slammed his foot on the accelerator and sped off toward the road.

"Man, I never thought I'd see the Megazord destroyed like that." Bulk said in complete disbelief. "Glad the Rangers got out in time."

"This has really been some day, huh?" Skull mentioned as he continued to quickly guide the bus back onto the main road toward the safety of home.

~~~

As the zords cried out, devoured by the flames, the Rangers, de-morphed, could do nothing, but look on in utter despair at the loss of their mechanical companions.

"Just when we need them most…they're gone." Trini lamented. The friends looked among themselves and teleported back to the command center to find Zordon gone. Alpha recounted how the Green Ranger had invaded the command center and made Zordon vanish from the grid. At that moment, the Rangers were even more unsure of what their next move against Rita Repulsa and the lethal power of the Green Ranger would be.

As Kimberly ranted about how the Rangers were history and Jason brooding about how he should've lead the team better somehow, Trini, though defeated, felt a small victory in rescuing Skull. At least she hadn't lost him. Regardless, the world was still in potentially grave danger and Zordon was gone.

Just then the computer beeped and whirred. Alpha relayed that the computer had been running a DNA scan on the Green Ranger and had been scanning for a match to determine the ranger's true identity. The Rangers gathered around the viewing globe.

"Finally, we can get some answers!" Kimberly exclaimed. The image began to come through, blurry at first, the viewing globe slowly sharpened the image revealing the identity of the green ranger, their newest, most dangerous enemy.

"Kimberly…look." Trini said feeling sympathy toward her friend. Kimberly looked on, her eyes brimming with tears, shaking her head. The image cleared, zooming in on the face of the green ranger.

"I don't believe it." She gasped in painful heartache. "Tommy?" she questioned in disbelief. 


	7. The Talk

_**Chapter 7: The Talk**_

With the revelation that Tommy Oliver was the Green Ranger, the team believed that he had been placed under an evil spell cast by Rita Repulsa. Their new mission was to track down Tommy and try to break the spell while Alpha was determined to bring Zordon back and somehow revive the zords. The crew agreed to split up and span across Angel Grove to find Tommy and meetup at Mr. Scott's auto repair shop a few blocks from the Youth Center when they were ready.

Having being saved by the Power Rangers and speeding down the street in the stolen bus, Bulk and Skull decided to return it back to the Youth Center parking lot where they found it. To their surprise, teens were going back inside the Youth Center. Luckily the building hadn't collapsed after all. The two ran inside to find nearly everyone gathered around a TV set on the juice bar counter broadcasting Goldar's attack on the city. The boys sat at one end of the bar, digging into a fresh popped bowl of popcorn and pretzels set on the counter.

While Ernie was distracted by the television, Bulk snuck over to the blender and snatched the whole pitcher containing a freshly abandoned smoothie. He sat back down beside Skull and took a large gulp straight from the heavy glass pitcher. Just then, Kimberly ran up to the counter.

"Hey, Ernie-"

"Can you believe this is happening? Monsters actually destroying the city." He said in astonishment.

"Yeah, it's terrible." Kimberly replied, watching the broadcast. If only they had their zords, they could get back out there and fight.

"Thank goodness for the Power Rangers!" Ernie stated proudly. Kimberly smiled and nodded.

"Hey! You _should_ be thanking _us_." Bulk chimed in as if offended.

"Yeah, _us_!" Skull agreed, taking a bite out of his pretzel. Kimberly and Ernie looked at them in absolute confusion.

"Yeah!" Bulk went on to explain, "_We _were the ones who helped the Rangers scare off that big ugly gold guy." Bulk claimed. Skull gave an assured nod. Kimberly rolled her eyes at them.

"Yeah right." She scoffed. The punks frowned.

"Yeah, right!" Skull defended. "We're the ones who should be on TV!" he argued, gesturing toward the set in emphasis, half bitten pretzel still in hand. He shook his head, annoyed that Kimberly would have the utter nerve to doubt their claims. Bulk looked off in dream-like bliss as he imagined just what it would be like to be on tv.

"Yeah…TV…" he said with a goofy grin.

"Dream on, Bulk." Kimberly quipped. The boys looked at one another and Skull just gave a shrug before devouring another pretzel. Kimberly sighed and turned back to Ernie.

"Ernie, have you seen Tommy?" she asked.

"Yeah, he's right over there." He pointed to Tommy, using an exercise machine. His face seemed stone-cold and focused, almost frightening. Despite his menacing aura, Kimberly knew what she had to do and walked over to him, leaving the bullies to their snacks.

Bulk took another gulp of smoothie and spotted Trini jog in through the door. He gave a huff.

"Oh great, just what we need, more geeks!" he complained. Skull glanced over to see just who Bulk was referring to. Trini! She looked right at him and motioned for him to come over so they could finally have their talk. His bright blue eyes glistened excitedly. As he stood up quickly from his chair, he haphazardly knocked into Bulk, smoothie spilling all over Bulk's purple tie-dye shirt. Skull's face dropped before cackling at his misfortune. "Skull…" he growled in rage. Skull immediately stopped laughing.

"I-I'll get ya some paper towels, buddy!" he proclaimed, hoping Trini would take the hint. "Yeah, paper towels…" he added looking back and forth between him and Trini anxiously. "Paper towels from WAY that way!" he pointed vaguely before eagerly running away from the scene to follow Trini outside.

"Skull, there's paper towels right-"Bulk motioned toward a roll on the opposite counter. He shook his head bitterly, "Idiot." He mumbled, snatching the roll to clean himself up.

As Trini and Skull headed outside, she looked around and took his hand, and led them around to the other side of the building so they wouldn't be disturbed.

"Sorry, to pull you away like that." Trini apologized. Skull gave a cheeky grin.

"That's alright." He assured her teasingly giving her hand a squeeze. "I was beginning to think we were never going to talk again." He confessed.

"I know, and I'm sorry about that, it's just…I've had plenty going on lately." She explained.

"And that's fine. I understand you're busy, but…" Skull started, "What I wanted to talk with you for…I just…I want to know if you, me, if this is something you still wanna do." He asked sincerely. She nodded, still holding his hands.

"Skull…I really do, but…I want to know something myself." She interjected. Taken off guard, he tilted his head.

"Okay?" he replied puzzled. She took a breath.

"You can just be so mean…to everyone, and I know you. You're not really like that." Trini pressed. "You have a good heart, but you keep putting on this attitude and…I just want to know why." She asked, looking deep into his eyes. His usual clueless or smug demeanor quickly dissolved. He was stern, quiet, taking in what she said. Skull glanced down at his feet before looking back into her searching dark eyes.

"I…I can't tell you." He responded.

"Please?" Trini pleaded gently. "Skull, whatever it is, I just want you to be honest with me. Please?" she asked. There was a long pause and the boy mulled it over in his head. He had a hard time not wanting to pour his guts out to her. Those desperate eyes, begging for him to tear down his walls, he just couldn't say no. He rolled his head back in a loud sigh.

"Alright. Here's the truth," he began, "When I was a kid…I had one close best friend. Did everything together, but as we got older…he started to realize that I'm an idiot compared to him and he would always rub it in my face. He made me feel like an even bigger idiot. By the time we started middle school, he found a new group of friends, and I had no one." Skull looked out at the nearby park. "I became a prime target for bullies all through 6th grade, that is until I met Bulk. He helped me. He told me that if I don't want to get pushed around, I gotta be the one to push first. He had my back and I had his, and I still do." He looked back to Trini, who looked on at him in sympathy.

"But, you hurt people who have done no harm to you." Trini carefully pointed out. Skull shook his head.

"That's the thing isn't it? You never know who could hurt you. Strike first before anyone has a chance to strike you." He chuckeld. "Stupid…"

"No, Skull it's not stupid. I understand you've been hurt." She sympathized, touching his face, "But you have to try to let people in. You let _me _in." she reminded. He gave a nod and raised his eyebrows, recognizing she had a point. Just then, a car nearby was playing the radio loud enough to hear.

"This just in!" the radio announcer boomed, "The monster is currently terrorizing and destroying the business district of downtown Angel Grove!" he reported. "Authorities are urging everyone to stay home and avoid the downtown area until the monster crisis is averted!"

Trini gasped. The man in the car changed the station, but they were all the same. Every station was broadcasting about the crisis downtown.

"Skull, I really have to go and find my friends, but I want us to continue this conversation later!" she said, letting go of his hands and turning to leave.

"But, Trini-!" Skull started to protest. She turned back and planted a firm kiss on his cheek.

"Please, stay safe." She urged before sprinting down the sidewalk, leaving Skull completely astounded and at a loss for words. Just as he was letting her in, she had to disappear. Typical. But what she had said, to 'stay safe'. She didn't want him to get hurt…a smile creeped onto his face. He still had faith that they could work out after all…that is if she didn't keep running off inexplicably for no reason.

Trini ran as fast as her legs could carry her toward the auto repair shop. Zack, Kimberly, Billy, and Jason were already there talking amongst themselves. She slowed and caught her breath when she reached her friends.

"Trini, what's wrong?" Kimberly asked worried.

"There's big trouble downtown." She said gasping to catch her breath. "It's all over the radio. A monster's attacking the business district." She explained. Jason shook his head.

"Rita's not going to give up is she?" he asked rhetorically. "It's MORPHIN TIME!"

The Power Rangers came onto the scene in the Business District just in time to face the Green Ranger's massive dragon zord. Bulk and Skull watched the live coverage from the safety of the Youth Center. That Green Ranger was really a terrible opponent, controlling the dragon zord with a flute in the shape of a dagger. The trumpeting sound of the flute caused the dragon zord to swing his tail violently.

To everyone's amazement, as they watched the tv footage, the once fallen zords miraculously emerged unharmed from underground, ready to take on their foe. The crowd in the youth center cheered as they watched the battle unfold between the Green Ranger's Dragon zord and the Power Ranger's Mega zord.

"Yeah! Get 'em!" Ernie cheered.

'Stay safe.' Skull remembered Trini had urged him. He grinned. He couldn't stop playing the conversation over and over, feeling her kiss still lingering on his cheek. He knew they definitely needed to spend more time alone, when the world wasn't in danger and they could just relax. They would soon be able to rest easy as the dragon zord was driven off, and the Green Ranger fled to the mountains in retreat. The Rangers quickly followed, hopefully to put a stop to his reign of terror once and for all.

"And there you have it folks!" The newscaster proclaimed, "The Rangers have once again, saved our fair city yet again. Thank you Power Rangers, where ever you are."

"Man oh man. Where would we be without those power rangers, huh?" Ernie asked excitedly.

"Yeah." Skull agreed. The Power Rangers would keep him safe, just he hoped the Rangers would keep Trini safe as well.


	8. The Agreement

**_Chapter 8: The Agreement_**

Skull stood around the back of the Youth Center, a large smoothie cup in hand. The wind gently rustled the leaves of the nearby tree keeping him shaded. He looked around, his hand fiddling with the pack of gum in his pocket while he waited. It wasn't long before he spotted Trini walk casually outside the main set of doors. He smiled and gave a whistle to get her attention. Her long, silky black hair swayed as she turned her head to look in his direction. She smiled back and shook her head before jogging over to him.

With a dopey, coy grin he held out the smoothie for her.

"You got me a smoothie?" she asked.

"It's a mango protein blend. I know it's your favorite." He replied. She gently took hold of the straw with a beaming smile, touched that he had remembered. She took a long slurp of smoothie, while he held the cup for her. He leaned in, his shimmering, blue eyes gazed deep into hers. She couldn't help but chuckle and pulled back from the straw.

"What?" she asked with a giggle. He gently shook his head with a shrug.

"Nothin'." He replied dreamily. Trini smiled, while a blush came to her cheeks. She loved these moments with him and desperately wished they could share these moments publically. But after their conversation last time…

Skull grew up believing: if you don't want someone to hurt you, you hurt them first.

'How can I get him to change his way of thinking?' she wondered.

"Hey, Trini? You okay?" Skull asked concerned. Her face must have shown that she was deep in thought.

"Hm?" she tucked her hair behind her ear, "Oh, yeah, I'm fine." She smiled reassuring his concern. Skull gave a half smile back. He wanted to take her word, but he knew something must be going on.

"You sure?" he pressed. She nodded, and rested a hand on his arm.

"I'm perfectly fine." She confirmed as she took another drink of the smoothie.

"Is…is it about me?" he asked worriedly.

"No…no..." Trini defended, but the boy raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Okay, it is a little…" she confessed. He hung his head and sighed, "No, it's just…I wish we could tell people the truth about us. I don't want to hide how much I really care for you." She said tenderly taking hold of his hand. He in turn ran his thumb over her knuckle.

"I know and, believe me, I do too!" he replied, "But if we tell people, I don't want Bulk and Sharkie to gang up on you OR ME, and I know _your_ pals would give the both of us a hard time-" he reasoned.

"But they're our friends. They'll understand-"

"And if they don't?" Skull asked concerned, "Trini, I don't want you gettin' hurt. Besides, it's not just our friends, it's your parents…" Skull began to list off. Trini was about to interject, but realized he was making a fair point, "there's those college scholarship smart people always watchin' you, and you don't want them to see Angel Grove's bright and gold student, Trini Kwan hangin' out with Eugene Skullovitch." He explained. She frowned. He had some good points.

"Okay, you may have a point…" she admitted.

"Yeah." He mumbled, taking a loud obnoxious slurp of the smoothie. "Stinks…" he mumbled.

"How about, just for now, we can keep this private until we feel ready, or after graduation. By then, it won't even matter." She said with an optimistic smile. He reluctantly nodded. She placed a hand on the side of his face, bringing his attention to her, "Or until you and Bulk can learn to not be so rude and arrogant." She suggested sternly. He pulled back and waved her off.

"Bah! That ain't no fun! Bein' all proper and nice. Nah! NO. WAY." Skull declared, looking off dramatically into the middle distance. "I'm a punk baby! A bad boy! And THAT'S how it's always GONNA BE!" he said, punctuating his declaration with another loud and unbecoming slurp of smoothie. She giggled and shook her head. His melodramatic proclamation was humorous, but she hoped he was only joking and someday willing to change.

"Well, listen, that bein' said…" Skull said as he finished swallowing the mango slush in his mouth and handing the cup to Trini to hold. "I was actually wonderin' if you wanted to go with me to the classical music concert thing at the park this Saturday night?" he asked. "Everyone's goin' to the dance, so no one from school will see us there together…that is…if you weren't plannin' on goin' with anyone to the dance that is…" he trailed off nervously.

"I would love to go with you." She replied, gripping his hand tightly. "I think that's a great idea!" she commented. Skull chuckled eagerly.

"Great!" he exclaimed, "So…the thing starts at 6, want to meet there at 5:30-ish, so can grab a bite…maybe sit and…_talk_?" he asked teasingly wiggling his eyebrows. Trini chuckled and gave him a playful shove.

"Stop it." She said giggling as he grinned widely, leaning in closer and closer. "Stop it." She said weakly, unable to stop giggling as he pulled her in close and nuzzled the side of her head.

"Come on, you _know_ you wanna play around." He joked, beginning to tickle her exposed sides thanks to her bright yellow crop top. She shrieked and laughed, struggling to hold her smoothie in one hand, and fighting the punk off with the other.

"Skull, quit it!" she said still laughing, struggling desperately to get out of his hold and get him back. "Skull!" she cried playfully. "Eugene!" He immediately froze. Not letting go of her, Skull craned his head back in shock.

"Eugene? OH. OH. Oh, now you're really in for it!" he threatened jokingly. She laughed before letting out a laughing cry as he hoisted her up, continuing to mercilessly tickle her.

"Ahh! Skull!" she laughed, "No!"

"You call me Eugene, this is what you get!" he laughed. She kicked and struggled to get out of his grasp. He was stronger than she realized, but then again, she wasn't really fighting against him.

"I'm sorry!" she shrieked, "Stop, I give up! I give up!" she surrendered. "Please…" she pleaded. Skull picked up the seriousness in her voice and set her back down on her feet.

"Alright…alright." He said giving into her pleas. The two smiled at one another, both catching their breath. Their faces softened and as the two leaned in close, closing their eyes… BEEP BEEP BEE-DEE BEEP BEEP Trini's communicator interrupted. Though Skull continued to lean in anticipating that kiss, Trini quickly snapped her attention to the device on her wrist.

"I'm sorry, Skull, I have to go." She informed, handing her cup back to him, "You can finish it for me. We can talk later, okay?" She offered, scampering off back inside. Skull furrowed his brow and ran in after her.

When he ran inside to the main room however, she was nowhere to be seen. He let out a defeated sigh and pulled out a stick of gum from his pocket. Anytime they started to really connect, she always seemed to disappear. Why? He stuck the gum in his mouth and smacked away, trying to ignore his frustration.

"Hey, Skull!" Bulk called from the juice bar, "Where've ya been? I've been looking all over for you!" he said as Skull made his way over. "I think I've got a plan to show up Zack's goody-good student for the karate competition this weekend." Bulk said, shoving a flyer advertising Sunday's junior karate tournament into Skull's chest. Skull looked over the flyer.

"Bulk! Says here, first prize in a trophy and a hundred bucks!" he declared excitedly.

"No kidding, dummy!" Bulk snapped. "My little protégé, Biff from Angel Grove Elementary will win us the money when he wins!" he explained, proud of his plan.

"You really think Biff that can take on Zack's student?" Skull asked not fully confident in his larger friend's scheme.

"I don't THINK, nitwit! I KNOW!" Bulk argued. Skull shrugged, ready to go along with it. The prospect of $50 was hard to not get excited about, but this scheme seemed so mundane to the plans he was anxious to meet with Trini. His heart fluttered at the thought and began to get lost in his daydreams- WHACK! Bulk smacked him upside the head.

"Focus, Skull! Now, I'm having Biff meet us here for some training. We've got some serious work to do. We can train as hard as we need to, tomorrow, Friday, AND Saturday." Bulk said, ringing his hands calculatingly.

"Saturday?" Skull asked, "Say, Bulk…Hypoallergenically…"

"Hypothetically?" Bulk corrected.

"Yeah, THAT…uh, what time do you think we'll train Biff on Saturday? I uh…I told my, uh, my… mom I'd…help with uh …somethin'." Skull lied. "…Saturday night at 6." He clarified. Bulk narrowed his eyes at him, suspiciously. Skull grinned nervously, smacking his chewing gum furiously.

"No problem, man. We can finish before 6. We can train early afternoon so we can finish before it gets too late." Bulk answered casually, not seeming to pick up on Skull anxious behavior. Skull sighed and relaxed. Just had to get through the rest of the week…


	9. The Saturday

**_Chapter 9: The Saturday_**

The rest of the week went by PAINFULLY slow for both Trini and Skull. Bulk pulled Skull along to every "training" session he held for Biff. The kid was an animal, that was for sure. The long sessions wouldn't be so bad if Bulk wouldn't occasionally have Biff use Skull as a target to release all 4 foot 3 inches of uncontrollable fury. So long as Skull's face didn't get messed up before the date, the skinny punk just took the abuse in stride.

When Saturday finally came, Trini was beat from studying for exams, Skull was just beat from his repeated beatings from that vicious child. He only had to face one more round of training before the tournament that Sunday. Biff was going to be stiff competition for the other competing children. Skull couldn't help but get constantly lost in thought, daydreaming about his date with Trini…

_'"The stars are so beautiful.' Trini expressed, her eyes affixed on the heavens above as Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata filled the air._

_'They're only beautiful because they twinkle in your eyes.' The smooth talker replied. Trini swooned, hands over her heart and draped herself over him._

_'Oh, Skull.' She crooned, 'You're the most romantic, strong, most handsome man I've ever known!' she complimented. Skull smiled proudly._

_'Yeah, I know.' He replied, running his hand through his hair. She took hold of him in a fit of passionate desperation._

_'Kiss me, my love!' she declared, resting a hand on his cheek. He puckered up and leaned in-"_

"SKULL!" Bulk shouted, snapping Skull out of his daydream just in time for -

THWACK! Biff delivered a solid uppercut, knocking Skull off his feet and landing hard on his back in the floor of Bulk's living room rug. Skull groaned in pain, not wanting to move.

"Yes!" Bulk celebrated, pumping his fists, "That's it, Biff! You just pull moves like that tomorrow, those geeks will never know what hit 'em!" he encouraged, giving the kid a high five. Skull groaned, counting the stars circling his head.

"Farkas! Would you and your friends like some cookies?" Mrs. Bulkmeier asked, a tray of fresh chocolate chip cookies in hand as she entered the living room.

"Ooh! Cookies!" Bulk and Biff shouted, stampeding over Skull to the cookies. Skull gasped in pain as a small converse shoe stepped squarely on his chest. The boys gathered a handful of cookies each, while Skull still lay sprawled across the moss colored carpeting.

"Eugene? Would you care for a cookie?" Bulk's mom offered. Skull raised an arm weakly as to answer 'yes, please.' She promptly shuffled over and daintily placed a cookie in his outstretched hand, not at all realizing the boy wasn't laying on the floor simply because he wanted to.

"Thanks." He replied, forcing a smile up at her.

"Thanks, mommy." Bulk thanked, planting a kiss on his mom's cheek. The plump woman smiled from her son's show of gratitude.

"You're welcome, honey. You boys need anything else before dinner? I've got a meatloaf in the oven, but if you boys wanted any snacks or juice?" she offered. The three shook their heads as Biff shoveled the cookies into his mouth like a rabid gremlin.

"I think we're okay right now, thanks, mom." Bulk replied with an innocent smile.

"Okay, just let me know." She assured as she shuffled back into the kitchen, leaving the boys to continue with training.

'I'm going to die at the hands of a monster child…Someone write my will and tell Trini what happened to me…And tell her…' Skull internally lamented as the room stopped spinning and he stared up at the white popcorn ceiling and the wicker fan spinning overhead. He shook his head and Bulk reached out a hand to pull him up back onto his feet.

"You okay, buddy?" Bulk asked, patting the smaller punk on the back.

"Yeah yeah, I'm fine." He waved off.

"Good. Good." His friend said turning to Biff, cookie crumbs all over his sticky child face. "Okay, Biff, ready? Square up!" he ordered. The tiny fireball took his stance and growled at Skull. The punk gave a sigh, dropping his shoulders as if to say, 'Really? Again?' "And…GO!" Bulk commanded. Biff screamed and lunged at Skull. The teen shut his eyes ready to embrace the ensuing torment.

~~~

Trini flipped her hair and ran her fingers through the long dark locks having just finished using her hair dryer. She smiled, eagerly prepping for the date. She wasn't usually the type of girl to use much makeup, but she decided to apply just a little, still keeping a fairly natural look. Under the sink, she pulled out her small gold sequin makeup bag and set it on the counter. The teen zipped it open and pulled out the liquid eyeliner, modest eyeshadow palette and brush, and a few tubes of lip gloss. She wasn't feeling like she really needed nor wanted foundation and powder.

As a new song to begin playing on the radio, Trini started applying her eyeshadow. The music was a solid beat with a basic, but heavy chord progression. Deep guitar, she nodded accepting the tune. The alternative band performing the song was never really her style, but she didn't mind letting the radio play on while she continued.

_ Well, I heard you crying loud, all the way across town  
You've been searching for that someone  
and it's me out on the prowl  
As you sit around feeling sorry for yourself_

The bronze eyeshadow really did make her eyes pop and was satisfied before moving on to the eyeliner. She carefully took the bottle and unscrewed and removed the brush applying the liquid carefully along her top lid.  
_  
Well, don't get lonely now, and dry your whining eyes  
I'm just roaming for the moment  
Sleazin' my backyard so don't get  
So uptight you been thinking about ditching me_

The eyeliner glided perfectly along the edge of her lid. Trini carefully looked over her work and smiled at herself, moving on to choose a gloss. The two of the options were shimmer glosses, the third was a clear gloss, nothing special. She looked between the tubes of shimmer gloss and decided on the peach-toned gloss. Just as she was about to put the brush to her lips,

BEEP BEEP BEE-DEE BEEP BEEP

Trini's heart stopped. She froze, staring at her own stunned expression.  
_  
No time to search the world around  
'Cause you know where I'll be found  
When I come around_

~~~

Skull groaned, holding his arm, and trying to maintain his balance.

"H-hey, Bulk? Can we stop? We been at this for hours." Skull complained. Bulk sighed and raised his arms.

"Fine. I think we've trained enough for the tournament. How you feelin', Biff?" Bulk asked his underling excitedly.

"I'm ready to tear someone apart!" he cried, grinning ear to ear. Bulk clapped him on the shoulder. Skull rolled his eyes and groaned. He really could take any more abuse from this monster child. He caught a glimpse at the wall clock above the sofa, a panic shooting through him. It was already 5:28. He let out a quick yelp and rushed for the door.

"Skull, where you goin'? You aren't staying for meatloaf?" Bulk asked.

"I can't, Bulk, sorry. I have to get to my date...with…with my uh," he chuckled nervously, "my 'date' with my mom, helping her with the…stuff…at the place with the thing." He lied, racing out the door. "See ya, Bulky!" he called, taking off in breakneck speed to his dad's car parked on the street outside the house. As tempted as he was to slide across the hood of the car with the adrenaline pumping through him, he awkwardly ran around the front and flung himself into the driver's seat. He fumbled with the keys, finally plugging it into the ignition and speeding off toward the park.

Skull gave a sigh, more than happy to have escaped that hell. He glanced over at the duffel bag in the passenger seat and patted it reassuringly. He brought a somewhat nicer change of clothes, knowing he would get messed up by Biff's beating that afternoon.

Driving well over the speed limit, Skull managed to pull into the parking lot of Angel Grove Park just a little after 5:40. He scrambled for the duffel and fumbled backward, head over feet into the back seat to change. He threw off his clothes and put on a pair of black jeans, a light brown, vertical stripe button down dress shirt, a loosely worn dark brown tie, black suspenders around his waist, and he transferred his favorite chain adorned belt from his camouflage cargo pants to his jeans.

He spilled out of the back passenger seat door onto the asphalt but sprung back up to zip up the sides of his black leather riding boots. He hopped on one foot as he tried to zip up the last boot and run to the viewing area for the concert. It was already 5:45, no doubt Trini was already there.

Not being able to run anymore, Skull slowed to a walk along the sidewalk to catch his breath. He looked around amongst the attending crowd, but couldn't see Trini anywhere. Skull picked up his pace, moving closer to the throng of people. Most people were sitting out on towels and blankets, he thought maybe Trini would be standing so he would see her. Or she was late.

Trini did have the habit of not being incredibly punctual where their dates or meetups were concerned. Skull slapped the sides of his legs in acceptance. He didn't mind waiting, 'So long as she shows up before the last song ends.' He reasoned with himself, leaning against the nearest tree and looking around for any sign of her.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" An older man in a tuxedo announced from the stage. "I would personally like to welcome you to 'Classical Greats' here at Angel Grove Park." The crowd clapped. Skull searched around, still not seeing Trini. The man went on to explain who they were and so on, introduced the conductor, and took his leave. The conductor bowed before turning to the orchestra and began the first piece, Handel's Harp Concerto in B flat major Op.46.

When the song concluded, the audience and Skull applauded. The conductor gave a quick bow of the head and turned back to the orchestra. Skull gave a sigh instantly recognizing one of his favorite piano-centered pieces, Soler Sonata No. in F# major. Never had he heard the piece performed with such wide accompaniment by the harp and violin. In fact, it was a piece he himself had been practicing for months, but still hadn't yet perfected it despite having most of the piece memorized.

The boy's stomach gurgled loudly, indicating it was past dinnertime. Mrs. Bulkmier's meatloaf sounded really good right about then, alas, a hotdog would have to suffice. He ordered one hot dog and fries from the concession and found a new place to sit on a hill where he could get a better view of the orchestra.

Piece after piece was performed, the sun vanished some time ago. Skull surveyed the park one last time hoping Trini would be running up over the bridge, up the sidewalk, and hike up the hill toward him. His heart sank realizing she wasn't coming. It was then that the band indicated that they would be performing their final songs. Skull exhaled through his nose, crumpling up the hotdog foil into a tight ball.

The soft chords of Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini began, though the band wasn't playing the entire piece. These notes indicated they were beginning at the 18th variation point, halfway through. It's gentle, flowing tune gradually built up toward its grandiose just as Skull saw someone running toward him out of the corner of his eye.

It couldn't be.

But it was! Trini was running straight for him in a lovely, pale yellow, empire-waist dress. Skull stood, a smile of relief spreading on his face. Though, as Trini got close, his joy receded, as he was ready to interrogate her. Before he could say anything or question where she'd been, Trini wrapped her arms tightly around him.

"I am so sorry, Skull." She apologized. "There was an emergency and I couldn't get away. I am so so sorry." She pleaded.

"Hey, it's okay." Skull replied hugging her back to comfort her. "I'm just glad you made it at all. I was starting to think…" he paused before letting out a chuckle, holding her tight in his arms.

"I would never leave you." Trini whispered giving him a light squeeze. As the music melded beautifully into Chopin's Etude in E major Op.10 No.3 'Tristesse'. Trini felt Skull's body nearly lift.

"I love this piece." He whispered. The teens gently pulled away still holding hands and affixed in each other's gaze. Skull carefully brushed a lock of Trini's hair behind her ear, resting his hand on the side of her face. She placed her hands on his shoulders as they leaned in close, their lips meeting in a deep and tender kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he moved his hands on her lower back to keep her close.

The moment was unlike any either had ever experienced and even after they parted they continued to hold one another, their foreheads resting against each other. They allowed themselves to take in the music and getting lost in each other as if the world had fallen away.


	10. The Truth

The next morning when Trini woke up to the blaring alarm, she was unsure if what had happened last night was a dream or if it was in fact real. As she replayed her memory from last night's events in her head, she smiled, burying her face in her comforter in delight. That kiss she shared with Skull was so passionate, so magical. It was all she had ever hoped for her very first kiss. Of course, she had never imagined it would be shared with Eugene Skullovitch, but it certainly wouldn't be the last kiss they would share.

Sunday flew by. Needless to say, Biff was not the contender Bulk had tried to shape him to be. Biff's aggressive fighting approach was no match for his opponent's polished karate techniques thanks to Zack's mentoring.

After the tournament, Skull looked to Trini from across the Youth Center and tilted his head up at her, indicating he wanted to meet her out back. He sneaked away while Bulk talked with Biff about the boy's loss. The 'talk' chalked up to a defeated and enraged Biff launching a swift punch, landing just below Bulk's chest. The large bully stumbled back feeling the chest-tightening pain of betrayal from the small boy.

Trini gave it a minute or two before she slipped out herself. None of her friends or any of the attending crowd seemed to notice, as they were too busy meeting and congratulating the winners of the tournament.

She walked out the doors, and around the right corner, one more right to the back of the building where the punk was happily leaning up against the building waiting for her. His face lit up the second she came into his line of sight and stood up. The spot behind the Youth Center was the couples' designated hang out. It was blocked by trees and bushes, giving them the privacy they needed, and generally, no one had any reason to go back there anyway.

"So, was last night real or is my brain on the fritz?" Skull joked. Had Bulk been there he might've been met with something along the lines of 'When is your brain _not_ on the fritz'. Trini chuckled.

"It was real." She assured him standing close in front of him.

"You know…" his face skewed, "I-I'm having a hard time remembering all the details of what happened." He strained fakely. "If only someone could help jog my memory…" he teased suggestively. Catching on to his implication, Trini chuckled shaking her head before looking back into his eyes. She smiled and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

"Do you need me to help you remember?" she asked. He looked off and cocked his head.

"If you think you can..." He replied with a growing coy smile. Their minds in sync and on cue, they leaned in, they're lips meeting tenderly. Despite Skull's constant off-the-wall antics and seemingly uncontrolled energy, the way he normally kissed her was gentle, controlled, and deep. However, depending on the mood, the teens' kisses easily evolved into a more intense, debatably 'wild' pash.

After a rather heated make-out session, something in Trini's mouth didn't feel right. Skull cocked his head, noticing the confusion on her face. Her face twisted into disgust as she realized a wad of gum had made its way into her mouth.

"Skull…" she started pulling it out, "I appreciate you sharing, but I _really_ don't want this." She said presenting the small white glob. Skull laughed, embarrassed.

"Sorry, babe." he apologized. He took the wad from her hand and promptly put it back in his mouth, smacking it between his teeth thusly. She cringed and leaned her forehead against his chest, not wanting to accept the disaster of a boy she was falling in love with.

Their frequent meetings behind the Youth Center sharing smoothies and milkshakes soon came to include innocent make-out sessions as well. The meetings quickly became something of a sacred and favorite pastime. The two could be themselves, talk, kiss, and be real to one another.

However, despite the happiness and memories made in someplace as simple as the backside of a building, both teens were holding back on pressing issues they had for one another in their daily lives. Trini hated how Skull continued to sabotage her friend's projects and school assignments, particularly his cruel mistreatment toward Billy and flirtatious advances toward Kimberly. Trini knew his flirting toward her best friend was fake, and she could look the other way without concern, but the name calling and berating toward Billy, was unacceptable.

Skull on the other hand, though beyond smitten with Trini, her beauty frequently distracting him from the frustration he had toward her, Trini's constant tardiness to their secret meetings and dates was really upsetting. At first, he'd waved it off and just counted his blessings at how lucky he felt to have her, but when she started calling off dates altogether or straight up not show up at all, this was when it really ate at him. Every time she was late, her apology or excuse was another chip at Skull's crumbling patience.

What's more, was how Skull noticed how Trini started looking at a new transfer student, Richie. Richie was everything Skull knew that he wasn't, tall, tan, muscled, polite, quiet, an A student, a hard worker, and a frequent community volunteer. Richie was definitely the clean-cut, prep-boy she could easily take home to meet her parents, plus he got along well with all of her friends. The way Richie and Trini smiled and talked to one another, made Skull's blood boil.

How badly he wanted to sock the guy in his smooth, chiseled jaw, but because Richie worked for Ernie at the juice bar, the boy was untouchable. If he hurt Richie, there was no way Ernie would ever let Skull set foot in the Youth Center or buy smoothies and ice cream ever again. He just had to accept that Richie was here to stay.

It was only a matter of time before something would make the damn burst, but for the time being, both Trini and Skull kept their discrepancies to themselves, hoping, wishing that the other would change for the better.

"Trini? Trini?" Mrs. Appleby's voice snapped Trini out of her deep thought. She looked up in surprise.

"Yes, ma'am?" Trini asked.

"I asked you to name the themes of this last weekend's reading assignment." Mrs. Appleby repeated. Trini double blinked, bringing her mind back to class. She quickly shuffled through the lined page notes on her desk, until she hurriedly found the answer on one of her papers.

"The themes of the story are fighting for honor, and the pursuit of a deeper love despite the obstacles." Trini answered, relieved she was able to answer.

"That is correct." Mrs. Appleby commended. "Be sure you're paying attention, Trini." She suggested. Trini gave a nod.

"Yes, ma'am, I'm sorry." Trini replied. Skull too hadn't been paying any attention, not that that was particularly unusual, but the reason he wasn't focused on Mrs. Appleby's lecture was Trini sitting across the room. As he leaned on his hand and gazed at her, he imagined just standing up, proclaiming his feelings toward her despite what anyone, even their closest friends, would think.

'Just like Romeo and his fight to be with Juliet.' He thought to himself. 'But, maybe without the dyin'.'

Feeling watched, Trini couldn't help but glance over her shoulder and catch Skull's admiring blue eyes. He gave her a sly wink, a growing smirk coming to his face. She gave a small smile before turning her attention back to the front of the classroom.

Sitting in between them, just a row behind, Billy adjusted his glasses as he noticed their exchange. His face turned into that of puzzlement. At first, Billy shrugged it off, but throughout the class, Trini and Skull couldn't seem to stop making quiet contact. That was what convinced him that he had to ask Trini about it after class. If what he saw were genuinely friendly, if not flirty, exchanges between Trini and Skull, she and Billy needed to have a serious talk.

"So, class, as we continue through our exploration of the works of William Shakespeare, we will analyze themes and structure throughout his works." Mrs. Appleby informed. "Tonight's assignment will be to write your own short tragic story."

Bulk raised his hand. Mrs. Appleby sighed, unamused.  
"Yes, Bulk?" she said calling on him. He set his hand down and sat up straight.

"If Skull and I turn in our report cards, does that count as our short tragic stories?" he asked in all seriousness. Skull nodded in earnest, interested if his disturbingly bad report card could actually be turned in for entire class giggled.

"No." Mrs. Appleby answered flatly. The class continued to snicker. "It wouldn't be such a tragedy if both you and Mr. Skullovitch did your homework." She quipped. The boys frowned.

"_Wouldn't be such a tragedy if you did your homework_." Skull mocked under his breath, crossing his eyes and sticking out his tongue. He rolled his eyes and let out an exasperated sigh. Not having the energy or patience to deal with Skull's attitude, Mrs. Appleby continued addressing the class with final notes before the final dismissal bell rang.

Trini gathered her stuff and carefully stored it into her bag as the other students packed up their own belongings. Billy quickly packed his notebook and focused on Trini as he threw his backpack over his shoulder. He stood up and approached her as they began to file out of the classroom.

"Class remember, your short tragedy stories are due Wednesday, spanning at least two pages. And be sure to study for the Romeo and Juliet test Friday. We'll move on to 'Henry IV' next week for those of you wanting to get a head start on the reading material." Mrs. Appleby announced as the students filed and spread out into the hallway.

"Hey, uh, Trini, may I talk with you a minute?" Billy asked casually.

"Sure, Billy! What is it?" she asked. Billy gently placed a hand on her shoulder.

"May I speak to you somewhere more private?" he clarified. Trini furrowed her brow in confusion.

"Oh, okay." She replied wondering what it was he wanted to talk to her about. The two broke away from the crowd and into a more secluded area further down the hallway. "What is it, Billy? Is everything alright?" Trini asked in concern. Billy raised his eyebrows and adjusted his glasses.

"I am perfectly content. What I wished to inquire of you, is if there was something going on between you and Skull?" he asked almost timidly. Trini gave a laugh, though she wasn't sure if she really wanted to lie to Billy's face. He was so sweet and deeply cared about her as she did him. He was one of her closest friends after all.

"Me and Skull? What gave you that idea?" she played off, crossing her arms.

"In class today, I saw him wink at you, which," Trini went to speak, but Billy kept her from talking until he told her his full explanation for his suspicions, "wouldn't be odd of him as he is always quite unwelcomingly flirtatious toward both you and Kimberly, but I happened to notice you smile back at him." Billy finished. Trini licked her lips and took a breath.

"Billy, I don't-" she tried to answer.

"He couldn't take your eyes off you all class period, and if I'm being honest, it seemed you couldn't either." Billy said crossing his arms. "So, I wonder, is there something going on between you and Skull?" he asked again. There was a pause as Trini decided whether or not to keep the truth hidden from Billy. If she lied, it would hurt the trust between them. Besides, Billy Cranston was far from being a fool. He would figure it out sooner or later. Trini sighed.

"Okay, look…I know it seems strange, but yes. Skull and I have been seeing each other." She confessed.

"I had a feeling." He replied, glancing down at the floor.

"There's a side to him that no one knows, Billy." She explained, seeing what seemed to be an air of disappointment from her friend. "Deep down, he's really a good guy. He just…he has trouble opening up to people and being himself." She explained. "He said it had something to do with a friend he had when he was little." Billy shut his eyes and sighed. "Billy?"

"Hmm? My apologies." The blonde spoke, shaking away the invading memories, and adjusting his glasses. "Trini, I don't mind that you're involved romantically with Skull. Despite his grotesque attitude towards others and those in authority, I know he can be loyal and devoted to those he cares about, and I believe you are in good hands with him." Billy said granting his blessing.

"Billy, promise me you won't tell anyone else, okay? Can you can this secret for me? For _us_?" she begged her friend. He paused a moment before giving his answer.

"I promise." He answered simply. Without having to ask, he already rationalized why they must be keeping their relationship a secret. 'Reputation most likely.' "I truly wish you both all the best." He said giving her a gentle pat on the arm and left. Trini wasn't sure if he said that facetiously or if he genuinely did wish her well. She shook her head and advanced towards the double doors leading out.

'How does Billy know Skull is devoted and loyal?' Trini began to wonder, 'After the treatment Bulk and Skull always give him, Billy would be the last person to find positive qualities in Skull…'


	11. The Assignment

Chapter 11: The Assignment

The usual group of friends was hanging out at the Youth Center each of them working on their tragic story assignment for Mrs. Appleby's class.

"I haven't decided what to write my story about," Kimberly announced to the group, tapping her pen on the page of her open notebook. "What are you writing your story about Tommy?" she asked sweetly. Tommy smiled, looking up from his own composition book.

"I'm writing a 'mytha-logy' type story," Tommy answered excitedly. "See, it's about this guy who has this dagger, right, and the dagger is enchanted and gives him the power to control a large dragon." He said with a cheeky smile. The friends chuckled. Zack shook his head.

"Any chance this guy can play music with the dagger and wears green?" Zack asked teasingly.

"Yeah! How'd you know?" he asked very well aware of what his friend was insinuating.

"How are you writing that into a tragedy?" Jason asked curiously.

"Well, the thing is, he's forced to obey an evil sorceress, and though a fair maiden in pink tries to save him along with the help of a red knight," he continued looking between his two flattered friends, "he ends up saving them by sacrificing his power to control the dragon, defeating the sorceress." Tommy explained.

"Well, if Tommy's going to write about himself- I mean a green dragon-controlling warrior," Kimberly said giving Tommy a look. "Then I'm going to write about a princess that rides a pterodactyl. The sad part will be how a green knight fights to save her from a gross toad monster, but she actually sacrifices her life to save him." She told. Jason raised his eyebrows in disbelief.

"Are we all just writing power ranger based stories?" he asked. The friends looked among one another and shared a laugh.

"I guess that would be a yes." Billy concluded, looking over his own progress.

"How about you, Billy?" Trini asked. "What's your tragic story?" Billy adjusted his glasses.

"Well, it's about a unicorn who is incredibly smart, and his best friend is a thestral—" Billy started, but Kimberly interrupted.

"What's a thestral?" she asked.

"It's a horse-like creature, but it has a skeletal appearance with black leathery skin. They appear undead." Billy explained. "Anyway, the unicorn and the thestral are best friends and play together since they were little, they're incredibly close. But one day, the two are sent on a quest to retrieve a healing potion. Along the way, they come along different tasks, each one testing their intelligence. Each trial, the unicorn succeeds easily, but the thestral struggles with each task. The unicorn offers to help, but each time the thestral refuses, insisting he can do it on his own. For the very final trial though, the thestral becomes bold. Thinking he knows the solution before the unicorn has a chance to stop him, the thestral ruins their chance of getting the healing potion. Embarrassed by his failure, the thestral ends their friendship, and runs away, unable to admit that he was wrong. He should've embraced the unicorn's help, but didn't because of pride." Billy finished.

The friends all praised Billy on his clever story, while Trini's heart grew heavy. Knowing Billy's secondary zord was a unicorn and after she observed that their stories were based on their own lives…

"You okay, Trini?" Kimberly asked, lightly touching her arm.

"You seem deep in thought," Jason spoke up. "Is it about your story?" he inquired.

"Oh, no. I was just thinking of how great Billy's story was." She replied, looking to Billy's introverted expression hiding behind his glasses. He knew that she was now partially aware of what happened between him and Skull.

They had been best friends, but the way Trini figured, Billy did well intellectually in school, while Skull didn't. According to Billy's story, Billy wasn't rubbing his intelligence in Skull's face as he offered to help his friend study and do better, but Skull refused until the punk had done something bad making him feel the need to ultimately end their friendship.

Enough was enough. Trini felt the need to rekindle the boys' friendship. Maybe in doing so, Skull will feel more inclined to be nice and end his need to be feared and parade around like a tough guy. Then they could come out about their relationship. She smiled to herself. It was a brilliant idea, but she would have to get both boys in the same room alone to talk things out.

"Hey, guys," Richie spoke up, holding a tray of milkshakes, "Got your guys' shakes." He said, handing each glass to the teens. The friends each thanked him. Trini and Richie's eyes met as he handed over hers. He smiled. "You'll have to have me read your story sometime. I'll bet it's something special." He suggested. Trini smiled back, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Sure." She answered, really unsure of what to say to him. He gave a nod and walked back to the counter.

"I'll bet it's something SPECIAL." Skull mocked with a laugh, smacking his chewing gum. In he walked next to Bulk. The group of friends all scowled at the bullies, Trini rolled her eyes. She was looking forward to this attitude of his finally coming to an end, and hopefully soon.

"It will be something special!" Kimberly defended. "Better than anything you two could come up with."

"Just wait until you hear the amazing story Skull and I are gonna write!" Bulk declared. Kimberly raised her eyebrows in perplexity.

"What are you guys writing about?" Tommy humored, flashing his pretty boy smile. Skull made a skewed face.

"We're gonna write somethin'?" The skinny punk asked, just as amazed as the group. Bulk thunked him upside the head.

"Of course, dummy!" Bulk yelled, "It'll be about," he began, hoisting up one foot on a nearby chair for emphasized grandiose. "Two heroes, THE INCREDIBLE BULK and SUPER SKULL, and how they save the Power Rangers, BUT!" he paused, holding out a hand as if to signal everyone to brace themselves. "The two have to throw themselves INTO a VOLCANO, FULL OF FIRE SHARKS, saving the entire universe!" The group stifled laughter the best they could. "Their spirit will live on, in the hearts and minds of the citizens and the Power Rangers PERSONALLY erect a statue in honor of the two heroes' heroic heroism!" he concludes, wiping a tear from his eye. Skull laughed.

"Yeah! They're honored as heroes even though they…die." Skull's brain alarms blared. "Bulk uh, we're never really going to jump into a volcano of fire sharks are we?" he asked genuinely worried.

"Of course, not knucklehead! It's just a story." He clarified. Skull nodded his head in understanding.

"Well, that's quite the story, guys." Tommy humored. Kimberly giggled. Skull and Trini's eyes met as Bulk carried on about what a masterpiece of a tale he had invented. Skull glanced toward the door, signaling if she wanted to go outside to talk. She glanced toward the door and nodded to silently answer. Skull cleared his throat.

"Hey, Bulk, I'm gonna go to the uh, bathroom…and nowhere else." He lied. Trini slowly put her hand over her eyes, cringing at his terrible ability at lying.

"Alright. You can pay for our ice cream when you get back." Bulk replied, taking a seat at the bar. Skull nodded vigorously and darted around the corner. He poked his head back around the corner to see if Trini was going to follow. Trini stood as she saw him look around the corner. Suddenly, she realized this was her chance.

"Do you guys mind if I go outside for some fresh air?" Trini asked.

"Sure, Trini." Kimberly answered first.

"Billy, would you mind coming with me?" Trini asked. Billy looked up at her. He wasn't completely surprised, assuming she wanted to talk about his story in private.

"Certainly. I'd be glad to accompany you." Billy answered, standing up and following her outside. She led him around to the back of the building where she knew Skull would be waiting for her.

"Honestly, Trini, I don't know what I would do if we didn't get this time alone-" Skull stopped suddenly realizing Trini wasn't alone and leading Billy over by the hand. Skull scowled but stood his ground. He knew he couldn't hurt Billy in front of her, but it was going to be difficult to hold back. "What is he doing here?"

"I could ask the same of you." Billy replied, though meekly.

"I sort of know what happened between you two," Trini revealed. "You guys need to talk and make up." she demanded. Skull scoffed.

"Why?" Skull asked in disgust.

"Indeed. Why do we need to make amends?" Billy asked, "Seems the mutual, proverbial line was drawn between us years ago and is certainly not about to dissipate any time soon."

"Yeah, the proverbial line was drawn!" Skull agreed but then paused, puzzling over what it was he just agreed with. Trini shook her head.

"Skull, I told Billy." She started.

"Told Billy what?" he asked, his anger growing.

"About you and I." She answered honestly, but before she could go on, Skull put his hands on his head, turning away from her and groaning in frustration.

"Trini!" he groaned. "You told him, and you brought him to our secret place…" he moaned, feeling betrayed. "This is why I didn't tell you my EX-best friend was Billy 'lame-brain' over here. I knew you would do this." He complained.

"Skull, don't you see? If you fix your friendship with Billy, it'll give you a chance to really be yourself in front of others. We can be open about our relationship." She explained taking his hands in hers. "You can change your image to reflect the goodness I see in you." Skull took a step back pulling his hands out of her grasp. The dam of swirling emotional build up was beginning to crack open.

"We can never be friends." Skull snapped back, laughing as if this was a cruel joke played on him. "Did he tell you the whole story about why we can't fix our friendship?" he demanded. Billy crossed his arms.

"I myself would like to be enlightened as to why." The blonde stated.

"Growing up, we were really close, you know. I was always there for him. Whenever we were in trouble, I took the fall. I never ran away when he needed me. But as we got older, he got straight A's, I got D's and F's. What does he do? He rubs it in my face!" he yelled, "'How about I help you study? It's actually really easy! You should have me tutor you." he mocked. Billy stepped forward.

"I was not 'rubbing it in your face', Skull. "I only offered to help you. I hated seeing how upset you were that you struggling." Billy defended.

"I didn't want your help, nerd! You only did it to make yourself look good! You ALWAYS thought you were better than me just because you were smarter than me!" Skull argued.

"That's not true!" Billy replied. Skull scoffed at this and turned away from him.

"What happened?" Trini asked, "In your story, Billy…the thestral…he ruined their chance to get a healing potion?-" Skull scoffed at the fantastical parallel.

"We were partnered for the Science Fair. The teacher thought being partnered with me, he would get an easy 'A', help his grade." Billy began to explain. Skull rolled his eyes with a huff. "I did all the work, wrote the formulas, gathered the chemicals, all he had to do was pour them in a certain order with the pre-written amount at the event. Well, when it was our turn to present, I went to instruct him what to do, but because he couldn't let go of his pride and need to prove he could do it without me, he shoved me, poured all the contents from every bottle he got his hands on and caused a messy, explosion. No one was hurt, but because of it, we both failed the project."

"You were nagging over my shoulder! You wouldn't just let me do it on my own!" Skull yelled.

"You didn't know what you were doing and because you couldn't admit that you were wrong and that it was your fault, you threw our near 10-year friendship away!" Billy yelled back. Even Trini took a step back. She had never seen Billy so angry or shout like that.

"I threw it away because you NEVER stood up for me like I did for you!" he screamed. Skull's accusation hit Billy unexpectedly. Before Billy could talk, however, Skull cut him off turning to Trini, "I was bullied, I was picked on and teased ALL THE TIME. You know what they called me? 'The Idiot'. AND do you know what Mr. Egghead over here did? NOTHING!" he accused. The anger in Billy's face fell to that of shame. Skull nodded, knowing he'd hit the nail on the head. "Not once…not once did you step in to defend me, did you? When kids picked on you, I ALWAYS stood up for you, didn't I! What did you do when they came for me, huh?" Skull asked getting right in the other boy's face, "You didn't do anything. Too ashamed to be best friends with 'The Idiot'." There was a long silent pause between the three teens.

"Skull-" Trini started.

"When the kids were kickin' me while I was down, a new kid busted in and chased them off. He picked me up, helped clean up my scrapes, and promised to always fight for me when I needed it." Skull told Trini.

"Bulk." She said understanding who he was talking about.

"That's right. Bulk taught me to push before they could push me." Skull said, hate and pain in his eyes. "You wondered why, Trini, well, there you go." That was why the two were best friends. Despite how Bulk would treat him from time to time, he had always been there for Skull when push came to shove.

"…Skull, if I apologize would that-" Billy started.

"Don't bother." Skull muttered.

Trini stood, unsure of what to say. Billy hung his head in shame and Skull turned away unable to face him. Clearly, they had been holding onto their pain for so long. Trini was undeterred, however.

"Skull, Billy, all of that is in the past." She said looking between the boys. "If you both can forgive each other-"

"Why?" Skull interrupted. "So I can join your geek squad? We can all be friends, go to pep rallies and volunteer to pick up trash and stuff in the park?" Skull asked, sarcasm positively dripping in his words. Trini frowned. "Ooh! I'll need to pick a color to wear every day, how about orange or purple?"

"Skull, stop." She said firmly.

"Maybe we can all hold hands and sing while we do our math homework-" Skull continued.

"Stop it!" Trini yelled. Billy rested a hand on her shoulder.

"Trini, you made a valiant effort, but it appears to be for not." Billy shrugged, "I better go." He added, takin his leave from the situation. Trini turned and reach for him.

"Billy, no! Wait, please-" she called. Billy didn't look back and disappeared around the corner of the building.

"Geek." Skull muttered under his breath. Trini had finally had enough. The dam had finally burst and the devastation was rapidly unfurling between them.

"Eugene!" she shouted. Skull smug expression fell instantly, "When are you going to stop it! I just want you to be nicer and stop insulting me and my friends, especially Billy!" Trini yelled.

"I ain't changin', BABE!" he shouted, practically spitting out the pet name, getting in her face, "I'm a loud, rude, and obnoxious punk and you're just gonna have to live with it! You thought it was cute and funny last time I told you I wasn't going to change." He pointed out. Trini simply shook her head.

"That was when I thought you joking, when I thought you cared! I just want you to put more effort into our relationship! All I want to be able to tell people-"

"Effort in our relationship? What about you, huh?" Skull laughed, turning it around on her. "Effort, she says. This coming from the girl who is constantly late until the very last second blows off our dates and meetings with no explanation-" he began to list off. Trini's face turned hot.

"I have given you explanations. I've been busy, emergencies come up-" she began to clarify.

"Emergencies for what?" he asked curious, genuinely wanting a straight-forward answer.

"It's…it's personal." She answered. She couldn't tell him she was a Power Ranger. She made a promise to Zordon, to her team not to tell anyone. She just couldn't let them down, even at the risk of losing Skull… her heart was beginning to break realizing she was quickly losing him already. "I can't tell you, just trust me, Skull."

"Trust you? Don't think I don't know what's really going on." Skull snapped back, "I know why you're always running off and mysteriously disappearing." He claimed. At first, Trini got nervous. Had he actually figured out her secret? She wouldn't blame him for being mad at her for not telling him that she was a Power Ranger sooner, but, "I see the way you and Richie have been ooglin' at each other." Skull accused. Trini's emotions immediately flipped from sympathy to confusion and frustration.

"What? Richie?" she asked, thrown off. She never thought that's where he was leading the conversation.

"Don't play dumb," Skull demanded, "that's MY job!" he said pointing at himself. "Don't think I haven't overheard you talkin' and seen the way you look at him with those big goo-goo eyes." He said. "Honestly, I don't really get why. The guy is about as interesting as a bag of hair and the personality of a telephone pole." He remarked. Trini frowned, growing more and more tempted to hit him.

"First of all, I'm not dating Richie, but I like him because he's NICE!" she defended. "He has a steady job and is polite and kind to people. Even if he's more reserved at least he doesn't bully people because of some insecurity." She argued, her words striking the final blow to Skull's heart.

"Well, if he's so nice and so perfect, why don't you just date HIM then?" Skull shouted, his anger boiling over. Trini felt paralyzed at his words and couldn't muster anything more to say. Her throat tightened and she felt the tears stinging in her eyes. His blue eyes were frantically searching her own eyes, anticipating her response anxiously. The second the words left his mouth, he wanted to take it back, but it was too late. Without another word, she gave him a shove and ran.

Skull felt helpless and watched her run from him. That pressure against his chest, her pain-filled eyes, it was his fault. All she wanted was for them to be out and celebrate their happiness in worry-free bliss. No more hiding, no more wordless gestures to sneak off to share a smoothie and a kiss. They could be free.

He hated it. He looked down at his yellow doc martens, kicking a small rock off the plateau of the sidewalk and into the crack between the two cement sections. He hated the pain of his realized guilt. He hated that both Billy and Trini were right. He hated the entire situation he'd put them in.

His pride had gotten the best of him and dashed any chance to rekindle his friendship with Billy, possibly forever. Billy seemed ready to move on, but Skull just couldn't bring himself to apologize for the explosion and forgive him for not taking a stand against his bullies.

And Trini. Trini. This gorgeous, amazing, extraordinary girl cared so much for him. All she wanted was for them to be happy, but he didn't even try. He hadn't put forth effort into furthering or bettering their relationship. And in an instant, he'd thrown that away, too. He'd said horrible things, things he didn't mean. He crossed the line and he knew it. How could he face her and admit he was wrong…that is if he ever could.


	12. The Grade

**_Chapter 12: The Grade_**

"Okay, everyone, come up and hand me your short tragedies." Mrs. Appleby requested the following Wednesday afternoon. The students stood, papers in hand, and walked up to her desk at the front of the room in an orderly fashion. Bulk strode up proudly and slapped down the single, crumpled, horribly sticky and smudged paper onto the desk.

"There you are Mrs. Appleby." Bulk said in a cheery tone. "One," he held up a finger for emphasis, "amazing tragic story by me and Skull." He declared. Mrs. Appleby was unimpressed.

"Well, I hate to break it to you boys, but this was not an assignment you could complete as a pair." She informed, without much sympathy.

"S'alright, Mrs. Appleby. I've got my own right here." Skull reassured handing her his own paper, taking both Bulk and Mrs. Appleby by complete surprise. Skull's own papers were in stark contrast to Bulk's. Although it was only one sheet, the paper was clean and mostly free of wrinkles, folds, and unidentified food stains.

"Skull? You actually did the assignment." Mrs. Appleby responded, not quite a statement but neither that of a question. It was the teacher trying to grasp the concept of this lazy boy actually turning in an assignment separate from Bulk, or an assignment _at all_ for that matter. "Should I be afraid to read it?" she joked. Skull gave a shrug. "Well, I'm going to begin reading and grading your stories, you may use this time to study for our test Friday or complete the written prompts on the board due tomorrow morning."

On the blackboard were written opinion questions based on Romeo and Juliet. 'What did you think Shakespeare meant when he wrote this?', 'How do you believe the characters were affected by this?' etcetera. Bulk chuckled to himself as he settled back into his seat.

"Yeah right." He mumbled, pulling out a large container of jellybeans. "Hey Skull, did you want to-?" But to his shock, he saw Skull beside him do something he had never, in the many years of their friendship, ever seen him do. The skinny punk was writing in his class composition book. Bulk did a double take, and glanced over to see what he was working on. Perhaps, it was doodles or song lyrics—His eyes bulged in disbelief. Skull was jotting down the prompt questions.

"Hey, since when have you cared about the prompts?" Bulk asked in a concerned tone. "You sick or somethin'?" he asked. Skull shook his head, smacking away at his gum.

"What? I guy can't try to bring up his grade?" he shot back as if this behavior wasn't unusual. "I don't know about you, but I don't want to get straight 'F's again." He explained. "Kinda want to enjoy my summer this year…" he muttered. Bulk's jaw hung open. What had sparked this change in Skull, this need to actually try? It was so unlike his little buddy, it was genuinely frightening him. He quaked in his desk unsure of what to do.

As most of the students worked on the prompts and several others studied, Mrs. Appleby had finished reading the first few papers. As she set the recently graded piece in a separate pile, she turned back to the stack still needing to be graded. Her hand recoiled as she read the name scrawled in the upper right corner of the page, 'Eugene Skullovitch'.

Mrs. Appleby glanced up and saw much to her surprise and…delight, he seemed to be diligently working? No. He had to be goofing around as he always did. She shook away her concern and took the paper in her hands, red pen at the ready. Right away, she was intrigued and pleased to see he'd written in the proper format, despite his abysmal handwriting and writing past the blue indent line on the right of the page. She quickly made a mark in the indent column, before reading his piece,

_'Once upon a time, there was a guy, not me but some made up kinda guy.'_

Mrs. Appleby cringed. This piece was really off to a rough start.

_ '__He was cool, but no one really liked him 'cause he was kinda a jerk. One day, a amazingly awesome girl gave him a chance. She was the most beautiful girl he had ever met and he soon realised he may have been in love with her. Even though he loved her, she wanted him to change who he was. Not like, change in a bad way. The girl wanted the jerk to be nice! The jerk didn't really want to change though! If he changed, he may lose his only friend and his friend liked him as a cool jerk punk guy. But the guy wanted to be nice to make the girl happy but guy felt like it was pointless because he didn't know if he could change if he tried so there was no point. So the jerk yelled at the girl and was mean and __**horrible and**__**proud**__**and selfish**__,'_

The pencil seemed to have been pressed harder while the last line was written. Mrs. Appleby began to wonder about the story, if it was based on what Skull was going through. She glanced back up at him. He still seemed focused until he looked up at the board. His lips began to move, reading the question on the board before going back to writing in his notebook.

'So he was doing the work after all.' Mrs. Appleby concluded, turning back to finish reading.

'_He made the girl cry and she never wanted to see him again. The jerk knew he was wrong. He knew everything was all his fault. He had a gorgeous girlfriend, but because he was scared to change he threw her away. That's the tradgedy The End.'_

Mrs. Appleby marked the last spelling error with her pen and glanced over the page, taking in the words. She and Skull never really saw eye to eye, but as she watched him work, she couldn't help but want to reach out to him and make sure he was alright.

A little while later, Mrs. Appleby handed back the papers she'd graded. Skull was still struggling with only the second prompt on the board, but try as he might, he answered as best as he could. Not actually reading the material may have had something to do with it… Suddenly, a paper was gently sent next to his arm. Out of reflex, Skull was ready to just fling the paper onto the floor, anticipating that big, fat red 'F' glaring at him. Mrs. Appleby cleared her throat and the teen looked up at her.

"Skull, you may want to look at the grade this time." She suggested before handing Bulk his own paper with disgust. Skull frowned in confusion and frantically turned the paper over. His eyes widened. He just stared, slack-jawed in awe, his gum plopped out of his mouth.

He shook his head and looked back even closer to the paper to ensure his eyes were working. At the very top of the page, circled, in bold red ink, 'A minus', complimented with a star. Skull couldn't believe it. He couldn't remember the last time he'd received an A of any kind.

"An 'F'. Figures." Bulk complained, looking over the page, it wasn't until he actually looked at the page he realized the problem. Skull didn't write the story correctly, which couldn't have POSSIBLY been from Bulk shouting and screaming at him over his shoulder, forcing him to dictate his words while he spoke them aloud. Skull wrote,

_ 'Once, there were two amazoning heroes that were stronger than anything even power rangers, heroes were they, gret conquers were they and loved by people. So loved that something something something, BUT they would not be forgotten for you see (large smudge) jumped in volcano and power rangers made statue one that was big. The heroes had a legacy or somethin. THE END.'_

'The End' was written in dramatic flourished lettering, standing out proudly against the rest of the scribbled handwriting. Bulk growled.

"You dolt! I told you NOT to paraphrase my speech! I-" Bulk stopped, realizing Skull was frozen, staring at his paper. "What? Did Mrs. Appleby finally give you an F minus minus?" he joked, looking at his grade. Bulk let out an involuntary yelp in shock, making half the class turn. "Skull! How!"

"Bulk, silence, please." Mrs. Appleby instructed crossly.

"B-but, Mrs. Appleby-" Bulk stammered, struggling to find his words. She glared at him, slowly making him sit quietly. His brain buzzed, feeling as though it was going to short circuit. "This is an alternate dimension isn't? I've fallen through a wormhole somehow, haven't I?" Bulk asked himself, terrified. This was when Skull noticed the 'Please see me after class' written near the top. Skull's growing smile dropped in disappointment.

"Hey, Bulky," Skull whispered to his buddy who still seemed to be suffering from a mental breakdown. "If I got an A minus, how come there's a 'see me' at the top?" he asked worriedly.

"H-how should I know? Neither of us have ever gotten a grade like that in our entire lives." Bulk replied, gripping the edge of his desk.

"Well-" Skull began about to correct that statement. He seemed to recall getting low 'A's in 1st grade, at least, he thought he did. Bulk began to perspire.

"Is this the dimension where if I put glasses on everyone is an alien freak and the kitty poster over there actually says 'OBEY'?" Bulk asked, whipping wildly around the room. Skull looked exasperated at Bulk.

"I got an 'A' for writing a story, pally, it's not that crazy," Skull assured, growing more and more annoyed, and shoving his wad of fallen gum back into his mouth.

"It must be one of the signs of the apocalypse." Bulk muttered in panic. He leaped out of his seat. "We're all doomed!" he boomed.

"Farkas! Go stand out in the hallway!" Mrs. Appleby ordered. Bulk ran out the door, continuing to whoop and holler in the hallway. It would only be a matter of time before he got a detention slip personally handed to him by Principal Caplan. Skull smacked his gum and shook his head. Sure, Skull getting a good grade was unusual, but it certainly didn't call for that level of over dramatics.

Finally, the bell rang and students filed out of the room. Skull gulped and approached the desk, backpack slung over his shoulder and paper in hand. Once all the students had left, Mrs. Appleby turned to him.

"You uh, wanted to see me, Mrs. Appleby?" he asked holding up the paper as if presenting evidence.

"Yes." She answered. "Oh, don't worry, Skull, it's nothing bad, I just wanted to talk with you." She clarified.

"Uh…'bout what?" Skull inquired.

"First of all, wonderful job on the assignment, and I hope that means you're going to make an effort to pull up your grade?" she wished open-endedly. Skull couldn't help but laugh.

"Yeah, we'll see..." he answered cockily.

"Regardless," Mrs. Appleby continued, "your story. I could tell it was very heartfelt." Mrs. Appleby complimented. Skull nodded humbly. "That's why I wanted to ask you if you were okay." She said looking at him with concern. The punk was taken aback. He never thought he'd be having this conversation with Mrs. Appleby. He was sure she'd given up on him when she had the misfortune of teaching him last year.

"I'm okay, why wouldn't I?" he asked, laughing it off. "The story's not about me or anything, why would you think it was about me, 'cause it isn't." Skull unnecessarily defended.

"I wasn't saying that. What I am saying is that…" she paused thinking how to word this properly, "The boy in your story, if he's in love with the girl and the only kind of change she wants from him is just to be nice, I don't think he should be afraid." Mrs. Appleby advised.

"But what if I- I mean, what if the GUY doesn't want to lose his best friend?" Skull asked, eyes full of dread.

"Well, I think if his friend is really a true friend, he'll support him like always. Who knows? Maybe the boy being nice would spark a change in the friend, too." Mrs. Appleby suggested.

"What should he do?" Skull asked looking at her in defeat.

"I think he should apologize to the girl. That would be a good start. Trying to be good is hard, but I'm sure the boy can do it if he tries, especially if it's for a girl he loves." She said with a smile. Skull nodded and smiled back, his confidence renewed.

"You know what, I think you might be right, Mrs. Appleby! And this boy is gonna start doin' good by studying for that William Shakesman test!" he announced proudly. Mrs. Appleby's eyes rolled back, eyes fluttering in exasperation.

"_Shakespeare_, Skull." She corrected.

"Right! That guy!" Skull proclaimed, marching out the door, ready to find Trini and make things right. He wasn't quite ready to make up with Billy, but in his joint quest with Bulk to find the identities of the Power Rangers, he could strive to better himself in the meantime. He had the whole rest of the year to bring up his grades and start trying to be kinder to people. He was ready to make the change, not just for Trini, but for himself. If she was happy, so was he.

Mrs. Appleby sighed in exhaustion.

"I REALLY hope the school board doesn't insist I teach seniors next year. I don't know if I can take much more of this kid…" she muttered to herself, resting her head on her desk.


	13. The Summit

**_Chapter 13 The Summit_**

Despite wanting to apologize and make amends with Trini, and maybe even try to fix things with Billy, Skull couldn't seem to bring himself to do it. When he made eye contact with Trini around school, she would quickly look away and never look back. She was always with her friends and never alone to talk, or the six of them were straight up nowhere to be found. He was ready to just give up and move on. He had ruined what he had with Trini, just as he had with Billy all those years ago.

In the next month or so, more and more monsters attacked Angel Grove, and Angel Grove High had three new students, Rocky, Adam, and Aisha transfer in from the rival high school. The three quickly joined the usual group of friends and coincidentally, the three new students were well trained in martial arts and happened to be in the park when a band of putties showed up. They easily held their own and they were eventually granted with the knowledge of the secret identities of the Power Rangers.

It was November, the weekend after Thanksgiving. The air was growing colder with each passing day and word was going around the school of a brand new opportunity open to the Angel Grove High School student body. That early morning before the first bell, Billy was busy putting up flyers throughout the school.

"Hey, Billy!" Trini said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "The flyers look fantastic!" she complimented.

"Why thank you, Trini." He thanked, pushing his glasses up higher on the bridge of his nose. "I can't wait to talk to everyone about the Teen Youth Committee and the Global Peace Summit." He said, adjusting the load of posters in his arms. "This committee's mission is quite an amazing one."

"Well, I think it's just wonderful you're putting the assembly together for the committee this afternoon." Trini said graciously.

"Well, I'm hoping while they're here in Angel Grove they're able to find a student ambassador to represent the US." Billy explained, beginning to move on to the next location to post his flyer. Trini cocked her head, as she walked the hall with him.

"They're looking for an American ambassador?" she asked. Billy looked at her, taken aback.

"Had I not mentioned that to you before?" he questioned.

"No, I don't think so." She replied.

"Oh, well, the committee is going to be interviewing interested applicants to join them for the Global Peace Summit in Switzerland and smaller summits throughout the Netherlands for the next year starting next summer." Billy explained. "It would be a truly amazing opportunity for any one of the students." He added, pulling a piece of tape and hanging the next poster on the wall beside the staircase.

Trini paused and allowed herself to get lost in thought, 'It would be a great opportunity, help solve global issues and establish compromises for peace, across Europe…just get away from everything for a year.'

"In fact, I believe Jason and Zack turned in their own applications to join the Committee." The blonde revealed. This made Trini's head perk up.

"Really? Jason and Zack applied for the ambassadorship?" Trini asked. She wasn't too surprised about Jason signing up, as he's been talking about travelling and seeing the world for as long as she's known him. Zack applying though, maybe he just wanted to get out of Angel Grove. He seemed depressed about his crush, Angela. Time and time again he struck out with her, and she recently hooked up with one of the varsity football players. Trini understood if that was part of his reason for applying. She relatively hoped she could be awarded the ambassadorship to help the world, but also get away from her own relationship drama.

"Affirmative. Say, perhaps you could apply. Who knows? Maybe the committee would award all three of you with the ambassadorship." Billy said with an optimistic shrug.

"Maybe." She considered further. "What about you?" she asked.

"I would prefer not. I have too many things to be concerned about here." He answered. "But if you want to apply, the applications are in the office. The committee will be conducting their interviews tomorrow morning before school." Billy directed. "Oh, that reminds me, I had better pick up the symbol of peace statue from the art room…" he said giving Trini a quick wave. "I'll see you later, Trini!"

"Thanks, Billy. Think I'll go fill out an application before the first bell." She thanked, heading toward the office. As she walked, her mind turned over the pros and cons of being awarded the ambassadorship. She walked into the bustling office and spotted the application pages and a pen. She looked over the list of questions before setting it on the counter to fill out the page.

When Trini had finished, she looked the page over, double checking she hadn't missed anything. Feeling satisfied, she went to place the paper into a collection bin, but hesitated, Skull instantly coming to mind. 'I've been so cold to him. Am I signing up for this ambassadorship just to run away from him and my problems?' she asked herself. She shook the thought away as the first bell rang, letting the paper go from her grasp.

Trini headed to her locker, to pick up her textbook. She wondered if she should finally reach out to Skull and try to patch things up, but what if she was met with the same hostility the last time they "talked?" 'It was my fault he was put in that situation to begin with. I forced him and Billy to talk.' She thought.

"Hey, Trini!" Kimberly greeted. Trini smiled.

"Hey, Kimberly." She greeted back.

"Billy told me you, Jason, and Zack applied for that Peace Conference thing." Kimberly said, "I hope you guys get it. I mean, we'll all miss you, but still! How incredible would that be!" Kimberly beamed excitedly.

"Thanks, I sure hope so. The Summit could really help save the world in a different way, and it would be a wonderful opportunity to be a part of that." Trini reasoned.

"Yeah, I doubt the committee has to deal with explosions and getting slimed on and eaten by monsters." Kimberly joked. The girls shared a laugh as they walked into Mrs. Appleby's class and took their seats side by side.

"Hey!" Aisha greeted, sitting just in front of the two other girls, "Billy told me you were going for the Teen Youth Committee! Good luck!" she said giving Trini a thumbs up.

"Thanks." Trini smiled back as the tardy bell rang.

"You're a shoe-in for that ambassadorship, Trini." Rocky leaned over in a whisper before Mrs. Appleby could begin class.

~~~

The rest of the day flew by, and just as Trini was gathering her things and heading for the cafeteria for the Teen Youth Summit, Jason stopped her, Zack along with him.

"Hey, Trini, you ready to head to the Youth Center?" Jason asked. "You promised you would help me teach my karate class with me, since I have a larger group today." He reminded when it seemed clear she was confused.

"Oh no!" she said abruptly. "I forgot. I was planning on going to the assembly…I need to tell Billy."

"Hey, hey, relax, Trini, I already told Billy, you, Jason, and I had classes today." Zack assured, calming her down. Trini looked disappointed, but gave a small smile.

"Thanks, guys. I just feel bad. It seems like lately the three of us having been doing our own thing separate from the rest of our friends." Trini made notice. Jason gave a shrug.

"We'll make up for it. Maybe after the Summit, they'll come find us at the Youth Center." Jason suggested.

"Yeah, so long as the city isn't under attack by then." Zack complained. "Don't get me wrong, I love what we do, but man," he sighed, "an ambassadorship away from all the monsters and giant robots wouldn't be so bad, either." Zack explained. Jason chuckled, nudging him with his elbow.

"You said it." Jason agreed. Trini nodded.

"Definitely. And a chance to break away from OTHER drama." She mistakenly added. The boys looked puzzled at her.

"What other drama?" Zack asked. Trini's eyes widened and she stammered trying to figure out what to say as they made their way out the school doors.

"You know…" she said searching, "Homework, and, well…" As if on que, Bulk and Skull ran right in between them, knocking into the three teens haphazardly.

"Watch it, dweebs!" Bulk yelled.

"Yeah, dweebs!" Skull shouted instinctively, and then realized just who he was yelling at. His cheeks turned red and Trini scowled crossing her arms. "I mean, uh, sorry, we've got a lead on finding out the identities of the Power Rangers!" he revealed. Bulk grabbed his friend roughly by Skull's leather jacket collar.

"You dolt! First, we don't apologize. They were in OUR way. Second! Don't tell them about the Teen Peace dweebs bein' Power Rangers!" he hissed, suddenly realized he had just revealed their secret. The three teens chuckled at this.

"You think the Teen Youth Committee are the Power Rangers?" Jason asked, holding back a laugh. Bulk let go of Skull and approached the trio.

"Think about it! There's six of them, they're all about peace and fighting against compression-"

"I think you mean, 'oppression'." Trini corrected. Zack shook his head at Bulk's confusion of the two words.

"The point is, it HAS to be them! That's why Skull and I signed up for the ambassadorship." Bulk announced. The trio laughed as Bulk continued, "When we go to Switzerland, we can get closer to them and reveal the TRUTH!" as Bulk proclaimed their mission proudly, Trini noticed Skull had pulled out a gum wrapper and was scrawling something on it in pen. "Just because you three NERDS signed up, doesn't mean you'll beat us!" he challenged.

Skull slinked over to Trini, dragging his hand across her shoulder, the other hand had the wadded wrapper.

"Yeah. Bulky and I signed up to reveal their identities and you're not gonna ruin it!" Skull said harshly, carefully shoving the wrapper into Trini's jeans pocket. She gasped angrily by his touch, but didn't want to go after him as he hustled back to Bulk's side.

"See ya, dorks! We're going to learn all we can about Switzerland, so we'll be ready to ACE those interviews tomorrow!" Bulk explained, leaving. Skull laughed and simply pointed at them, leaving right behind his larger buddy. The other two boys shook their heads.

"Those two are unbelievable." Zack observed.

"They never give up do they." Jason added, aggravated that the bullies had put the three behind schedule.

"You can say that again." Trini said, fishing the note out of her pocket as they walked. She unfolded it and couldn't quite believe what it said.

"I did it 4 u." it read in messy black ink. Trini sighed. 'Oh, Skull.'

The trio had arrived at the Youth Center, changed into their workout clothes and taught their respective groups. After they had finished the classes, they showered up, changed, and were just about to enjoy a few smoothies when,

BEEP BEEP BEE DEE BEEP BEEP

The three looked at each other. Zack gave them a look that said, 'I told you so,' before Jason answered his communicator watch.

"We read you, Zordon."

"Jason, a serious situation has arisen!" Zordon bellowed. "Five of the world's teen ambassadors have been captured and imprisoned by Lord Zedd." He informed the trio as the three Rangers looked amongst themselves in worry, "Tommy has a plan. He will need you, Trini, and Zack to morph into action in order for it to succeed." He explained. Jason gave a nod.

"Ready guys?" Jason asked the other two. Trini and Zack nodded in earnest, they ran around the corner into a deserted hallway. "IT'S MORPHIN' TIME!" Jason shouted.

In short, the Rangers did what they did best, they faced Lord Zedd, and his monster of the day. The hoard of putties had stolen the peace statue from the school, and Zedd brought it to life, and influenced the statue to attack the Power Rangers. However, with help from their zords, and a bit of a hand from their non-powered friends, Rocky, Adam, and Aisha, they destroyed the oversized statue and not only saved the teen ambassadors, but the city of Angel Grove once again.

As Bulk and Skull had stalked the ambassadors, when they saw the rangers talking and shaking hands with the ambassadors, the two punks dismissed their previous theory of the ambassadors being the Power Rangers after all. This news however, did not deter them from wanting the ambassadorship. Bulk wanted to take in the food, chocolate, and culture, mostly the food and chocolate. Skull was all for sampling Swiss chocolate, but ever since he saw Trini's application in the office, his heart tightened.

She may very well be leaving, with no idea if she would ever return. He figured, if he applied, maybe they BOTH could be selected, they would be able to patch things up inspired by their beautiful surroundings, travel the Netherlands together, and enjoying each other's' company in worry-free (although chilly) paradise. How could his plan possibly fail? If they took Trini, they HAD to take him, too, right?

The next afternoon, the applying teens were lined up in the hallway, prepared to be interviewed by the teen ambassadors, one at a time. Jason was first, followed by Zack, Trini, twenty or so more students, with Bulk and Skull capping off the end of the line.

Jason seemed to be in and out of the classroom quickly and Zack gave him a high five.

"My, man, how'd it go?" Zack asked. Jason gave a shrug.

"It seemed to go well." Jason said, "They seemed impressed with my amount of volunteering and my karate lessons I teach the kids after school." He explained a big smile on his face. It wasn't often he was asked to list all of his accomplishments in one sitting, and having just listed all of them in the room, it reassured Jason of how incredibly accomplished he was at such a young age. Outside of the Power Rangers and fighting, he had always been self-conscious of his achievements, and was afraid he would be well into his adult years and not be satisfied with the amount of work he'd done as a teen. Boy was he given a positive dose of reality in the classroom and felt he may actually have a strong chance of getting selected.

"I'm sure you did great, Jason." Trini reassured.

"Thanks, Trini." Jason replied. "I'll wait out here until you guys are both done." He informed just as Zack was welcomed for his turn.

"Well, wish me luck, guys!" he said with a nervous smile.

"Good luck!" Jason and Trini wished simultaneously. With that, Zack disappeared behind the frosted glass window of the door. His silhouette faded as he entered further into the room.

"So, what kind of questions did they ask?" Trini asked, now growing more nervous for her turn.

"They just go over our applications and ask to elaborate on how we help our community." Jason replied. "You could easily tell them how you organized the Clean-Up Crew, held that petition to save the goddess statue in the park and gained it a national landmark title…" he listed. Trini chuckled, tucking a lock of hair behind her hair. "You've done so much to help the community Trini, plus with your outstanding grades and your amazing people skills, I'd be really surprised if they don't choose you for the ambassadorship." Jason complimented.

"Thanks, Jason." Trini replied, a blush crossing her cheeks, "That really means a lot. I'm just so nervous."

"Don't be." He smiled, taking her hand comfortingly. "You got this." He encouraged. A moment or two later, Zack reemerged. He exhaled a large breath and grinned widely at his friends.

"It felt like I had held my breath that entire time." He laughed, Jason giving his friend a high five.

"So?" Jason asked.

"Felt good." Zack nodded, "Yeah, I told them about my dance stuff for the kids, uh, kinda opened the door for you, Trini. I mentioned being a part of your Clean-Up Club that you set up earlier this year." He revealed.

"Aw, thank you. That may actually make this easier." Trini said, taking the doorknob. She gave a nervous smile as he two guy friends gave her an assuring thumbs up. She pushed the door open and walked in. The ambassadors all sat casually behind a table at the front of the room and watched Trini walk in and sit down at the single chair on the other side of the table.

The committee members smiled at her as she took her seat. Each of them greeted her. Trini greeted back, getting comfortable in front of them. The Israeli ambassador and committee chairperson, a stunning golden blonde girl, Tamara, scanned over Trini's application before looking back up at the eager applicant.

"So, Trini, you're application and credentials are very impressive." She complimented. "We have already been told spectacular things about your involvement in the community here in Angel Grove, like the uh," she looked down at her own scrawled notepad, "the Clean-Up Crew." She beamed. The other members of the committee nodded, wanting to hear more about the famed project as well.

"Well," Trini started explaining how it started as a project for school when she did research on the current state of Earth's environment. Upon researching, Trini saw just how polluted and dirty the city and Angel Grove Park was, so she organized an after school student volunteer group to clean up the park and areas around the city.

They had gathered such a large amount of trash and recyclables, which the volunteers cashed in the recyclable papers, bottles, and cans, and gave that money back to Angel Grove High. Said money was later invested in saving the struggling music program. Saving the music program was coincidence that Trini took great pride in, incidentally supporting Skull's secret passion. Oh, Skull, couldn't go one minute without _him_ busting his way into her mind.

The committee members asked a bit more about her other volunteer work and asked what Trini could bring to the International Teen Youth Committee.

"Well, as I'm sure you've now seen first-hand, not only do we face monsters threatening our cities, but in each of your own countries and communities, there are other monsters that we can face _without _the need of superpowers." Trini explained, "Monsters like those who force oppression, bigotry, and believe that money or violence is the answer." A few of the committee members nodded as she spoke, "And it's not just corruption in politics and government, it's also about how we treat our environment. It starts with us as humans on this Earth treating our planet with the care and respect we should give to one another, no matter what they look like, where they're from, their beliefs, or who we choose to love." The committee members smiled amongst each other, clearly impressed by her impromptu speech supporting everything the committee stands for.

"Yes, absolutely." Tamara agreed. "We do need to stand united to protect our Earth and love one another as we love ourselves."

"Very well said, Trini." Charlie, the Australian ambassador said with a sure smile.

"Yes, em…There is a great deal of discrimination in our world, and it is up to the committee to present this is a problem for the International Peace Summit." Boris of Russia added.

"Thank you, Trini." Tamara thanked, Trini took this as her cue to exit the room.

"Thank you." Trini replied with a grateful smile. She got up and left the room, Jason and Zack standing there, anticipating her return.

"Well? How'd it go?" Zack asked enthusiastically.

"I think it went really great." Trini replied, excitedly.

"I'm sure it did." Jason said wrapping her in a hug. Zack gave Trini her own high five.

"I'm sure we all did awesome." Zack added looking between his two friends.

"Let's just remember one thing," Jason said in a serious tone, "No matter what happens, no matter if one of us goes, two of us, all three of us or," he chuckled, "or none of us…" he paused, "We'll always be friends, and the power will always protect us." He concluded. Zack and Trini nodded.

"Always, man." Zack agreed. Trini nodded. "So, now that we're all done here, we down to meet up with the others at the Youth Center? It's Tommy's turn to buy a round of smoothies!" Zack exclaimed. Trini laughed as they began walking out.

"That is if he actually '_remembered_' this time." Jason jabbed. The other two couldn't help but laugh at the now white ranger's expense, as they headed out the doors.

Just as they passed the end of the line, Trini felt a hand reach out and gently brush her own. She looked, catching Skull glancing at her. Their eye contact made both teens feel as if time had briefly slowed down. The punk gave her a pained, half smile that read, 'I know you did great.' Trini gave the same weak smile back, before time sped back up again. They broke eye contact, but Skull didn't look away as he watched her walk out the doors of Angel Grove High with her friends. He knew he couldn't wait on her any longer. Somehow he _had_ to talk to her,

'TONIGHT'.


	14. The Night

******_Chapter 14: The Night_**

The evening air was bitter cold as the teen carefully opened their bedroom window and slipped out into the dark of the night. They checked their watch as they ran to catch the bus at the nearest bus stop. They quickly climbed on and tossed their cash into the dispenser before taking a seat near the front. The ride wasn't long before the bus had reached the teens' destination. As they climbed off, setting foot on a deserted dirt road, the bus took off back to the city, its tail lights being one of the few sources of light in the dark neighborhood.

The teen walked on up the dirt road, pulling their jacket tighter around them as the cold wind licked their face. Further outside the city, on the edge of the plains and farmland, it was far colder. It was dead quiet, only the sound of chirping crickets in the stretch of fields filled the air. It didn't dawn on the wanderer just how dangerous and stupid this late night venture was, until they continued to look around. They were on high alert as anything or anyone could pop out and attack them. They quickened their pace toward a nearby street sign. The light from a nearby house dimly illuminated the white lettering on the green sign.

"Henry Dr." and "Othello Rd."

Relieved that they were on the right trail, the teen looked up the road and beamed. A single light illuminated the porch of a pale yellow farmhouse, a beat-up RV, and metal barn-like structure beside it, fading into the darkness stretching beyond. The teen ran up and looked around for any sign of the significant other's bedroom. There was a single light on in one of the upstairs windows.

The teen looked around, but couldn't find a ladder or a way to climb up to the second floor from the outside. It was then that they spotted a large oak tree. They hustled over to the tree and jumped, managing to grab a low hanging branch and hoist themselves up.

Branch by branch they scaled the length of the tree until they were perpendicular to the roof of the second floor. Carefully, they leaped from the branch to the landing without losing their balance. Finding their footing, they sneaked to get a better look into the lit bedroom. They smiled and knocked gently on the window pane.

The other teen in the bedroom jumped at the sudden noise and looked to the window for the source of the knocking. They approached the window and quickly opened it.

"Trini?" Skull asked in surprise. "What are you doing here? What are you doing on my roof?" he questioned.

"I'm sorry, Skull, but I just had to come see you." Trini reasoned, carefully climbing in through the window frame into the punk's bedroom. It wasn't quite what she had imagined, but the décor still definitely exuded his influence. Two of his walls were painted black, the wall against the window and the wall his headboard was pushed against were a pinkish purple. There were clothes piled into what could arguably be described as a decent-sized mountain at the foot of his bed, spilling onto the floor. Trini spotted not only a piano keyboard, but a worn, cherry electric guitar on a stand plugged into an amp, a full drum set in the corner, and a coffin-shaped guitar case slightly open, revealing what seemed to be either another guitar or a bass guitar. Seemed he was more of a music lover than she realized. All in all the room wasn't over the top punk, but certainly had a look that suited Eugene Skullovitch perfectly.

"Actually, I was plannin' on sneakin' over to your place tonight…" Skull said as he quickly pulled her into a hug. Though she instantly returned the hug, she was surprised by this reaction to her sneaking over to his house so late. "I am so sorry, I hurt you, Trini," Skull apologized, taking a breath, "The things I said, what I said about you and Richie-" Skull choked, his guilt flowing freely. Trini squeezed him gently in her embrace and shushed him tenderly.

"It's okay." She assured, "It's okay."

"No, it's not…" Skull responded, continuing to hold her in his arms, "What I said, the way I acted…" he paused, stroking her hair. He shook his head, disgusted with himself, "It wasn't okay." Trini said nothing, pressing herself against him. She could hear his heart beating steadily as her ear pressed near his chest.

"But I shouldn't have tried to force you and Billy to make up like that." Trini admitted. Skull chuckled.

"Nah, I get why you did it." He replied with a sigh, "You have the kindest heart of anyone I have ever met, Trini Kwan." He said giving her a quick squeeze before letting her go to look into her eyes. "Say, uh," he said taking her hands, "Wanna go for a walk with me?" he offered. Trini gave a soft smile and nodded.

"Sure, but, where?" she asked. "It's the middle of the night."

"There's a small lake not far from the house. It's…really nice at night." Skull explained. "We can sneak out the back, just keep quiet, 'kay?" he said as grabbed his grey wool duster coat off a hook on the back of his bedroom door and threw it on over his shoulders. He picked up his black riding boots slumped by his nightstand before he carefully opened the door and tiptoed into the hallway. He turned to her and made a silent 'shush' gesture. Silently, the two made their way down the hallway, down the flight of stairs, through the kitchen, and out the backdoor. It was then that Skull put on his boots and led her off the back porch into the night.

As they made their way down a dirt road toward the lake, Skull took Trini's hand and led her toward the body of water. The boy had been right about the lake looking "nice at night", however, this was a great understatement. The way the moon light shone on the lake, the way the light glistened off the gentle peaks of the waves manipulated by the wind, was an incredible, captivating sight. The tall dry grass swayed gently, adding a rustling to the chorus of crickets surrounding them.

"Skull," Trini started as they walked around along the lake shore, "I came over to talk to you…Is it, true, your note you gave me? That you applied for the ambassadorship for _me_?" she asked. Skull looked at her confused a moment. He blinked before suddenly realizing what she was talking about.

"Oh, the gum wrapper. Yeah." He replied, "I thought, I don't know, what if they take both of us?" Skull suggested, Trini sighed in defeat. "I mean, when I found out you applied to join the 'It's A Small World' Peace Club" Trini gave him a tired look at the various names he gave the Teen Youth Committee, but allowed him to continue, "I wanted to take the chance that maybe we could go together. I mean, isn't that what the UN peace teen like? You know, some diversity? They pick a pretty smart girl, and uh, you know, a cool, punk me." Skull reasoned, "Call it uh, fresh perspective." He paused. "I uh, _did_ use that word right, right?" he confirmed, "Perspective?"

"Yes you did, but Skull…I don't…" Trini didn't know what to say. She didn't want to crush his dreams of being selected to go to the Summit in Switzerland, but he couldn't really believe his idea could work, could he?

"I know I'm not smart, or brilliant like you and your pals, but I didn't think it would hurt to try." He clarified. Trini nodded, feeling she understood. "I mean, the entire panel can't be made up of all smart pretty people, right? Gotta have someone real on their, you know? Why not?"

"I don't think that's how it works, but…it's not the craziest idea." Trini said thinking on his idea. It wasn't necessarily a wrong or wild idea about the Committee structure, but she knew they did seem to prefer student who weren't just smart, but showed they cared for the planet, and presented themselves a certain way in front of adult political figures, and other important people. True, someone like Skull could provide unique ideas to achieve peace, but numerous other factors were working against him suggesting the strong chance he wouldn't be awarded the ambassadorship.

"Let's just…sit a minute." Trini insisted motioning that she wanted to sit at the lake shore. As they sat down, Skull wrapped part of his coat around her and kept her close. He planted a kiss on her head as she snuggled in close against him, as they both enjoyed the enchanting sight before them. They sat in silence for a long time, just taking in one another's company in the serenity and tranquility of the night.

After some time, the air turned frigid as the wind picked up. Trini began to shiver, cuddling closer into Skull. The boy couldn't help but shiver at the bitter cold, too.

"We should get back inside before we become popsicles." Skull suggested, shifting to get back onto his feet.

"Good idea." Trini agreed, getting to her feet, but refused to pull out from beneath Skull's coat. They shuffled quickly back into the house, retracing their steps back up to Skull's bedroom. Skull let out a sigh of relief from the warmth as he shut and locked his bedroom door. He shimmied off his coat and hung it back on the door hook.

"Hoo. So much better in here." He noted, already feeling comfortable with the temperature.

"You don't mind if I spend the night do you?" Trini asked, "I don't really want to go back outside alone in the dark." She begged.

"'Course I don't mind." Skull easily answered. "Honestly, you never have to leave if you don't want to." Trini kicked off her white sneakers and took off her yellow sweat jacket. He crossed the room and sat down at his keyboard. As he turned it on, he turned the volume low so as not to disturb his sleeping parents down the hall. "Well, seeing as you are gracing me with your presence tonight, miss," he joked in a posh accent, she giggled, sitting down on the edge of his bed, "I, master Skullovitch, shall entertain you with my musical stylings…if you have any requests?" he asked, sitting up, and shaking out his hands. Trini thought about it for a moment.

"Hmm…do you know how to play that one song, it was one of the closing songs they played at that classical music performance at the park?" Trini asked. She never learned the song title, but hoped Skull knew the piece. He thought hard a moment, clearly wracking his brain for an answer.

"…Closing song?" he wondered as he searched his memory for the tune. His eyes popped wide as it struck him. "Oh!" he exclaimed, "What was it called…that uh, Rachmaninoff piece?," he realized as he hummed the tune for confirmation. Trini's face lit up as he sang it.

"Yeah! That's it!" Trini answered excitedly.

"I know the tune fairly well…I might be able to play it by ear…just bare with me a sec." He informed as he searched the keys for a starting point, allowing his fingers to rest just above the keys. As he began to play, it was as if his fingers were gliding, dancing along the keys effortlessly. The tune was so beautiful. Just like when he first played for her, she was so enamored with Skull's talent. The soft tune enveloped her and she found herself walking over to stand just over his shoulder.

Trini gently draped her arms on his shoulders and leaned over his shoulder to continue listening to the music. Skull blushed and gave a chuckle as he felt her lean against him. He gave a few very brief pauses as he played, searching for the notes in his head while his fingers worked. As he wound down the song, she gave him a soft kiss on the cheek. Skull brought his hand to hers, draped over his collarbone.

"That was beautiful." Trini complimented. Skull smiled.

"Yeah, you are." He replied coolly, making Trini giggle from his flattery. He turned his head and tenderly pressed his lips to hers. As they continued their shared kiss, he brought a hand to her cheek, holding her face to his, the kiss growing ever more passionate. He turned around in his chair and stood, never breaking contact and holding her close.

As they held each other, kissing more fervently, they instinctually moved to lay down on his bed, beneath the thick, fleece, zebra-print throw blanket. Before they continued further, Skull broke their kiss and turned off the bedside table lamp illuminating the room, the only source of light now coming from the moon light peeking through the slits of the window blinds.

~~~

Trini stirred from her sleep, realizing she was still comfortably wrapped by Skull's arm. She recounted the events of the night before. Her face turned red, but she was unable to suppress a satisfied smile. How she wanted to keep herself pressed against him, holding his body to hers. She could have easily stayed there curled up in his bed with him all day. She glanced at the glowing, red numbers on the clock and rolled over, planting a kiss on his sleeping lips. His eyes still shut, his mouth curved into a smile as he let out a low hum of content.

"Good morning." She whispered.

"'Morning." He replied, his blue eyes slowly opening to gaze at her. His eyes fluttered back shut as he chuckled, embarrassedly recalling last night's events.

"We should get up." Trini suggested. Skull groaned softly in his chest.

"Why?" he replied groggily.

"It's 6:30." Trini told him. "We still have to get to school." She explained.

"Ugh…do we have to?" he whined rolling onto his side to face her.

"I'm afraid so." She replied. The punk took a moment, his face tightening as he thought about it.

"Hmm…NOPE." he protested suddenly wrapping his arms around her and pinning her against him.

"Skull!" she yelped in surprise.

"You're staying right here with me." Skull insisted, a teasing grin spreading on his face. She sighed. "No school today."

"Skull, no. Last night was _fun_-"

"HEH, _yeah_ it was," he replied cockily.

"But we have to go, we have tests, and homework to turn in-" she reasoned.

"Oh yeah, you're _really_ convincing me with that…" he replied, his response oozing sarcasm as he began to kiss her neck.

"Skull, we would get in BIG trouble for skipping class. I'm sure _I'm_ already in enough trouble for sneaking over here last night." Trini argued, not really fighting his hold on her. "I don't even know how I'm going to explain to my parents where I spent the night…I can't lie and tell them I was at Kimberly's." she trailed off talking to herself.

"You just say, 'mom, dad, I snuck out, BUT it was to spend the night with a handsome, fantastic, and _sexy_ piano man'." He joked. Trini let out an annoyed sigh, making Skull laugh. She squeaked in surprise as he quickly straddled over top of her and looked down at her exposed body before quickly capturing her lips. She smiled as they parted, before patting his cheek.

"We need to get up." She said matter-of-factly, wriggling her way out of bed to retrieve her clothes from the floor. He hung his head and let out a defeated sigh.

"Fine." He mumbled. As he pushed the covers away, he raised an eyebrow as he spotted Trini's shirt and carefully snatched it before she had a chance to notice. Skull tucked it under one of the sheets while he put on a clean pair of grey boxer briefs and a pair of green cargo pants. As Trini finished putting on her underwear and jeans, she scanned the room unable to find her shirt.

"Skull, have you seen my shirt?" she asked.

"Uh, no, nope, haven't seen it." He lied, putting on his own black and white camo thermal and tying a skull and crossbones bandana on around his neck. Trini sighed impatiently immediately knowing he'd done something with it.

"Skull, where did you put it?" she asked sternly.

"Put what?" he asked innocently, crossing back over to the shirt's hiding place.

"My shirt." She clarified, growing continually frustrated with his antics.

"Shirt? Like, uh," he pulled out the white and yellow peasant top and held it up teasingly, "like this shirt?" he asked. She went to make a grab for it, but he playfully kept it just out of her reach. He teased her as she continued to try to jump for it and wrestle it out of his hands until she knew how to get him to understand she wasn't in the mood to play around.

"Eugene Andrew Skullovitch, you give me back my shirt right now." She demanded. His jaw dropped, his eyes widened. He paused in shock, allowing her to take back her property.

"Using my middle name, that's a low blow, Trini…Trini…" he tried to come back at her with her own middle name, but realized he didn't know it, "Trini, what's your middle name?" he asked. Her seriousness melted as she pulled on her shirt over her head.

"I don't have one." She replied, going for her yellow jacket.

"I-don't-have-one." Skull repeated, "No offense, babe, but that's kinda a weird middle name." he said, "Is that like, a traditional Vietnamese name?" he asked in full seriousness. Trini shook her head with a laugh and put on her sneakers.

"Just finish getting dressed, _Eugene Andrew_," she teased, "We're going to be late-"

There was suddenly a knock on the bedroom door, turning the teens into full panic mode.

"Eugene," his mom's voice came from the other side as she tried to open the door. "Why is this door locked?" she demanded.

"I'm naked, ma!" Skull yelled. There was a pause and the teens shared a frightened look. Trini looked to the window considering maybe getting down the way she came up the night before.

"Okay." Mrs. Skullovitch answered, "Breakfast is ready whenever you're ready to come down." She said starting to walk away. Trini and Skull both let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, and tell your girlfriend she's welcome to join us if she's hungry."

His mom's words felt like a hammer being swung at a pane of glass, shattering loudly in Skull's chest. The two just stared at one another awkwardly. Quickly they moved to gather the rest of their things, Skull throwing on his black beret. They headed out of the room and down the stairs for breakfast and relay damage control.

"I'm dead." Skull whispered to himself as they rounded into the kitchen.

"Good morning, kids." Mrs. Skullovitch announced as they walked in uncomfortably. Neither teen could tell if her tone was angry, passive aggressive, or genuinely welcoming. Skull's dad, wearing only a pair of ragged blue jeans, and an olive military vest looked up from his coffee and newspaper. He smiled up at the teens as they made their way to the table. Trini was amazed at just how much Skull looked like his dad.

"Hey there." He greeted. "I don't believe we've met. I'm Drew, this here's my wife Vicky. You're Trini right?" Mr. Skullovitch said, extending his hand. Trini shook it, but was briefly confused as to how he knew her name. Perhaps Skull told his parents about her, but judging from Skull's red face, this was not the case. "You know son, I've been wantin' to help you install _soundproofing_ in your bedroom…you know, for your…music." He said as he scratched his short, scraggily brown, peppered beard and returned to reading the paper. Skull groaned, resting his head on the kitchen table.

"Dad…" he groaned embarrassed. Trini's face turned bright red. The Skullovitch's were less than subtle letting the kids know that they had heard her and Skull's 'activities' last night. Trini didn't think they were that loud, but…

"Anyway, we're happy to have you over for breakfast, Trini." Mrs. Skullovitch said, happily placing a plate of eggo waffles, scrambled eggs, as well as a fork in front of Trini. "Eugene! Head off the table." She snapped. He perked his head right up as his mom gave him his own plate of food, though less gentle than she had given to Trini.

"I'm so sorry, for any intrusion, Mr. and Mrs. Skullovtich." Trini apologized. Mrs. Skullovitch chuckled.

"Call me Vicky." Skull's mom replied, "Forget about it, hon. You're not the first girl Eugene's smuggled into the house."

"Ma!" Skull yelled.

"What?" Vicky asked, not feeling she'd crossed a line, "At least she's pretty AND from what I hear, she's one of the brightest girls at your school. I heard so at the last open house." Vicky explained. Skull buried his face in his hands. "Not like that Sharkie girl. I always hoped you'd do better."

"I'm in a nightmare." Skull mumbled. Trini said nothing and ate while Vicky continued embarrassing her son further.

"You know for the longest time, Drew and I thought Eugene was spending FAR too much time with his friend Farkas, more time than normal friends do—" Vicky told before Drew piped up.

"They're just friends, babe." Skull's dad said dryly, clearly they've had this talk more than once. Skull leaned his head back in his chair desperately wishing the ceiling would collapse on top of him.

"Well, regardless-" before Vicky could continue, Drew set his paper down to take a drink of coffee.

"So, Trini," he spoke, "How long have you and Skull been dating?" he asked straight forward.

"Oh, well," she said looking over at Skull, "we've only been seeing each other a few months, but we've been friends since freshman year." Skull's agony dissipated at this. 'Friends?' She had actually considered him a friend throughout high school? He couldn't help smiling at this. "Unfortunately, I've applied for an ambassadorship in Switzerland, and if I get accepted, I don't think I could really do long distance." She explained. Drew nodded in understanding.

"Now, what kind of ambassadorship is this?" Vicky asked finally getting her own cup of coffee and sitting across from Trini at the table. Trini explained the purpose of the Teen Youth Committee and the purpose of the Peace Summit.

As she talked more with Skull's parents, Trini could see traits Skull had that he'd gotten from them. As she'd noticed before, Skull was the spitting image of his dad, yet somehow when Skull made certain expressions he looked like his mom. His brash manner of speaking and signature laugh also clearly came from his mom. His parents were incredibly eccentric in appearance, but much like Skull, they both seemed like wonderful people despite their tough exterior.

They continued asking Trini about herself before Trini started asking about the Skullovitch's hobbies, what they did for work, and so on until time came for them to leave.

"Here, I'll drop you two off before I have to run errands." Vicky offered.

"We were just gonna take the bus, ma-"

"Bah! I'm drivin'." She insisted, taking the keys to the Buick and leading the way out the front door. She stopped, giving her husband a kiss on the cheek as he finished his coffee.

"Pleasure to meet you, Trini." Drew said with a kind smile.

"You too, Mr. Sk-Drew." She corrected herself. He gave her a nod.

"Gene-man," he said, grabbing his son's wrist, "You fight for that one. You hear me?" he said in a stern, hushed tone. Skull nodded.

"Yeah, dad." He replied. "I'd do anything for her." His dad gave him a soft smile, letting him go.

The entire car ride, Vicky continued making Skull wish he was dead. She was telling Trini all the embarrassing stories about her son she could think of until they finally pulled up to school. For Skull's sake, Trini did her best not to laugh too hard at his expense as she listened to his mom's stories.

"So, as his dad took a bite of the fish, but he spit it out as his mouth was full of carpet fibers that were stuck to the fish." Vicky said laughing, "Eugene played innocent until FINALLY he confessed he'd dropped the filet on the carpet and just put it back on the plate like nothing'd happened." Trini giggled. Skull held his head back, staring at the ceiling of the car, trying to will himself out of existence.

"Well, thank you for breakfast and the ride, Vicky." Trini thanked with a laugh as Skull quickly opened the car door to escape into the school. School was better than another humiliating moment with his mom.

"Of course. And you're welcome over to our house whenever you'd like, hon." Vicky assured. Trini slid out and shut the door behind her. "MAKE GOOD CHOICES, EUGENE!" his mom shouted, a few nearby students laughed at this. Skull a turned back to the car to give his mom a look that shouted, 'Seriously, mom?!' With the loud squealing of tires, the car peeled out, his mom cackling, as she drove out of sight.

"Mom…" he groaned shaking his head.

"You okay?" Trini confirmed, holding back a laugh.

"Yeah, I'd better find Bulky and you gotta get to your color squad." He joked. She frowned turning to leave. He quickly took her hand, "Wait." He stopped her. Trini turned back, "Thanks for last night." Skull said, blush crossing his cheeks. "And, about what my mom said, you not being the first girl at the house," he began, "the only girl I've had over was Sharkie, and her and I have never been a thing." He explained. Trini gave a nod.

"I understand." She reassured him. She squeezed his hand and gave him a smile before she headed into the building.

"Can we…you know, _hang out_ again soon?" Skull asked. She looked back at him.

"Of course!" she answered, going through the double doors. Trini realized though, before she met up with her friends, she needed to head to the office. She had to call her parents and tell them she was safe at school and try to explain where she'd gone that night, though omitting the part where she slept with a boy.

She giggled in spite of herself. What a night it was. They gave themselves over, holding nothing back, spur of the moment passion. If she were chosen for the ambassadorship, it will have been one amazing night she would cherish, knowing the unlikelihood she and Skull would ever share a moment like that again. But if she weren't selected, if she stayed, she enjoyed the idea of being able to experience that expression of shared love time and time again in the coming future.

Everything was up in the air, but within the next few days, everything would quickly fall to the ground, laying out everyone's plans that would affect the next year, affect the rest of their lives.


	15. The Announcement

p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"strongemChapter 15: The Announcement/em/strongbr /br / That Friday at school was uneventful aside from the few tests and weekend assignments. Saturday, Angel Grove Park hosted its annual Triathlon, to which Rocky, Adam, and Aisha had competed. The rest of their friends were there to cheer them on. Skull would've liked to try to pull Trini away to get some more alone time, but Bulk kept him occupied with their newest scheme to discover the identities of the Power Rangers. The plan was to sit in a boat on the lake in the park during the swimming portion of the competition and use Bulk's energy output meter to determine which swimmers were emitting unusually high power /br / However, Lord Zedd, the evil master of the galaxy came up with his own plan to use the energy output meter and Skull's fishing pole to create a beam casting monster. The monster was created with the ability to control the minds of the citizens of Angel Grove to carry out Lord Zedd's bidding. Fortunately, with Billy's quick thinking, the blue ranger was able to invent a frequency reverser to undo Lord Zedd's brainwashing. With that out of the way, the Power Rangers united their power weapons and took out the monster for /br / Aside from the excitement of that Saturday, nothing compared to the excitement that followed that very next Sunday afternoon. Jason, Zack, and Trini met at the park, the three of them had their bikes in hand. They had planned to have a late lunch, and ride around the park just before sundown as the local news was slated to report the chosen ambassadors for the World Peace Summit that /br / The three rode down the hill toward the covered benches, propped up their bikes, and unpacked their lunches. It was the perfect day out. It was mildly chilly, but in the sunshine, it was pleasantly warm. Trini smiled, looking out over the park. The breeze rustled the leaves of the trees, kids played all the way down to the lake, and the water running from the waterfall, down the length of the park stream babbled under the red-painted bridge just beyond. If Trini were selected to go to Switzerland, she would certainly miss her life in sunny California for that year, or however long they would have her /br /"Hey, Trini, I packed a few extra bags of fruit snacks." Jason said pulling the small bag out of his backpack, "Want one?" he offered. Trini turned and sat down beside /br /"Sure." She accepted, taking one of the small bags. "Guys, I'm really worried." Trini /br /"'Bout what, Trini?" Zack asked. Both boys looked at her with /br /"Well, I'm starting to wonder if applying for the ambassadorship was really such a good idea." She said. br /br /"How come?" Jason wondered. "Just having to leave Angel Grove?" he asked. That was a loaded question for the yellow ranger. It wasn't just leaving home she was concerned /br /"It's just, if one of us gets chosen, what will happen to the Rangers?" she asked between the two of them. The boys looked at each other, the thought never occurring to them until that very /br /"Well, I guess, Zordon would come up with something. Maybe he'd give someone else our powers or…or maybe we can still be rangers and teleport to the source of the danger." Jason /br /"Man, teleporting from one side of the world to the other," Zack winced, "that sounds exhausting."/p  
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""Is the Ranger stuff the only thing that has you worried?" Jason wondered, "Because if that's all it is, I wouldn't be too worried. Zordon will figure it out. The world will still be kept safe whatever he decides." The red ranger assured, unwrapping his sandwich from the plastic wrap and taking a /br /"I suppose you're right." Trini admitted. Oh, how badly she wanted to relay the whole truth to her friends. It wasn't just the Rangers she was concerned about. She was worried about her relationship with Skull. The two of them had become deeply intimate, their relationship far more serious than she meant it to become so /br /"Anyway guys, I was thinkin' of offering a new type of dance class after the holidays," Zack said changing the subject. As the three ate their lunch, they talked about future plans and ideas they had on hold should they remain in Angel Grove. The conversation then went to current movies, tv shows, and they somehow got on the topic of reminiscing on past monsters they'd faced in that very /br /"Come on." Jason said, tossing his garbage into a nearby receptacle and putting on his helmet and backpack. "Let's ride around and burn some of this off with a race." He challenged, a cocky smile spreading on his /br /"You're on!" Zack replied, tossing out his own trash and putting on his helmet, "I'm gonna whip the both of you, guys!" he said confidently mounting his bike. Trini shook her head with a /br /"Oh, we'll just see about that!" she exclaimed, clipping her helmet strap and straddling her pale yellow Mud Dock. In a flash, the friends took off, racing as fast as they could along the sidewalk as the sun began to set on their tranquil /br / Meanwhile, Bulk and Skull were at the Youth Center, decked out in traditional Bavarian dress, wearing matching lederhosen and tyrolean hats. All day they had studied and embraced the Swiss culture and attempted to learn some of the German language. The boys were highly confident that they would be announced as the two US Teen Youth ambassadors, so they wanted to be as prepared as possible. This also included buying Swiss chocolate for themselves, which they happily enjoyed while sitting at the Juice /br /"Now, Skull. We're going to be picking up a lot of foreign chicks since we're Americans." Bulk explained simply. Skull nodded in understanding, "So we need to remember how to romance them in their own native language." Bulk said raising an eyebrow suggestively. Skull smiled wide and nodded when suddenly, his smile /br /"Well, Bulky, maybe we should've studied French, then." Skull suggested, "German don't sound like the most romantic language since we been practicing." He pointed out. Bulk rolled his /br /"emThat's/em because you haven't been speaking the language right, nitwit!" he criticized. Skull cocked his head, accepting this as a distinct possibility. "Just repeat after emme/em." Bulk instructed clearing his throat. "Guten tag, fraulein." Bulk demonstrated /br /"Goot-in tag, frow-line." Skull repeated, seeming proud. Bulk facepalmed and said it again with clear /br /"Guten tag." Bulk repeated /br /"Gootin tog." Skull repeated. The two obnoxiously went back and forth with this until after some time they were just repeating random German phrases at one another as if they were successfully carrying on a German /br /"Ja!" Bulk /br /"Nein." Skull responded as if in disbelief of something Bulk spoke to /br /"Ja! Ja!" Bulk nodded excitedly, handing his buddy one of his truffles from his own box of /br /"Danke." Skull thanked, giving Bulk one of his own chocolates in /br /"Nein, emdanke/em." Bulk replied, popping the treat in his mouth. Skull /br /"You know what's great about speakin' German? Everyone else speaks English so no one knows what we're even saying!" Skull explained. Bulk smiled and nodded, "It's like our own secret language! I mean, but you know…a secret language only Germans know…" he trailed off, "and Swiss people…" Bulk's smile fell slowly as Skull continued, "…or to people in America who speak German-"br /br /"I-I get it Skull." Bulk said popping another chocolate in his /br /"Badezimmer." Skull replied, hanging his head. Bulk scratched his head trying to recognize the /br /"What's that mean?" Bulk asked giving up trying to remember what they had studied. Skull gave a /br /"Pretty sure it means, 'Sorry.'…I think." The two paused thinking it over, but as they were unable to draw a definite conclusion on this, they shrug and carried on enjoying their sweets at the bar. Ernie turned up the volume of the tv set on the bar as he faintly heard the newscaster mention the World Peace /br /"Oh! They must be starting already!" Ernie exclaimed, turning up the volume on the set for the kids to /br /"Thousands of entrants," the television broadcaster began catching the attention of Tommy, Kimberly, and Billy who were already nearest to the bar. No one was expecting the news to reveal the names this early. Perhaps the network didn't want to wait any longer, "three names were announced today as the lucky students invited to attend the World Peace Summit in Switzerland." Tommy, Kimberly, and Billy gathered around the tv and leaned against the bar, earnestly awaiting the announcement, "The three youths will then meet and travel with teens from all over the world to discuss global problems that affect all of us, young, and old; hunger, pollution, poverty, cultural barriers, and education, are among the topics on a very busy agenda for these young people."br /br / The three friends glanced at one another as the broadcaster continued. Bulk and Skull were too busy goofing around, putting chocolate into each other's mouths to really be listening to the tv, "They will be visited by scientists, politicians, and academians, as they attempt to understand these issues and offer their perspective on solutions for world peace."br /br /"Bulk and Skull," Skull piped up proudly at the idea of being /br /"Peace ambassadors." Bulk added. "Auf Wiedersehen." Bulk said, grinning to his friend. br /br /"Auf Wiedersehen." Skull repeated perfectly. Bulk /br /"Yeah, boy, Swiss chocolate is great this time of year." He said eating another piece. Skull chuckled, turning back to the /br /"Dee Swissen chocolate ist gut-" Skull attempted to say in German, Bulk lightly backhanded his chest, signaling him to stop. Skull looked back at him with mild annoyance before eating yet another piece of chocolate, while Bulk began to lick his fingers /br /"The three teens from Angel Grove are," one at a time, the selected student's pictures were displayed as they were announced, "Jason Scott, Zack Taylor, and Trini Kwan." Kimberly gasped, /br /"Wow! That's incredible!" Tommy /br / Skull's chest tightened as he tried to process what he had just heard. He froze a moment before he swallowed the last bit of candy in his mouth, and removing his hat. He looked off toward the window, just wondering now what this meant. He wasn't too surprised Trini was chosen, but…he just wasn't ready to hear it and accept that she would be leaving Angel Grove…leaving him. The world seemed to fade around him, sounds turned silent, the voices around him faded into muffled murmuring. People moved around him, but he didn't register who they were nor did he care where they were /br / Bulk sighed, having also removed his hat. He patted Skull on the /br /"What do you say we go back to your place, buddy? Ride your dad's ATVs and eat ice cream until we forget about it." Bulk suggested. Skull didn't respond. He was still frozen, his eyes now lowering their gaze to the tile floor. Bulk could see his friend was devastated by the announcement, "Hey, come on, Skull, it's not the end of the world." His friend reassured him, "Come on, let's go cheer ourselves up. We shoulda known those goody-good geeks would be chosen, anyway." He said, pulling a rather zombie-like Skull out the /br /~~~br /br / Back at the park, Jason, Zack, and Trini, walked their bikes, exhausted from their long day of riding and racing along the long concrete path surrounding the full grounds of the /br /"Told you I'd beat you, Jason!" Zack celebrated after defeating Jason in their /br /"Yes, but let's not forget who beat emboth /emof you!" Trini teased, flipping her long black hair teasingly. The boys groaned before they all shared a /br /"It's getting late. We should head to the Youth Center." Jason mentioned, "They should announce the ambassadors by the time we get there-" Just then they heard shouting from behind them. Kimberly, Tommy, and Billy ran as fast as they could toward them, waving and hollering /br /"You guys are going to Switzerland!" Kimberly screamed /br /"All three of us?" Jason asked in happy /br /"Yup!" Tommy /br /"Congratulations," Billy congratulated, "This is the chance of a lifetime."br /br /"Yes!" Jason exclaimed with a fist pump. The six friends happily shared hugs and hive fived, congratulating them again on being chosen to attend the Summit. Just then,br /br /BEEP BEEP BEE DEE BEEP BEEPbr /br / Jason answered his beeping communicator, cutting the celebrating /br /"We read you, Zordon." Jason spoke into the /br /"Rangers, I need all of you to teleport to the Command Center." Zordon ordered. Jason gave a nod and looked to the other /br /"We'll be there right away." He replied, "Zordon needs us at the Command Center."br /br /"Let's go." Tommy added. The six friends powered their communicators and swiftly teleported to the command center to talk to Zordon. Once there at the command center, Zordon smiled down at the /br /"I am pleased, Rangers," Zodron boomed as the teenagers smiled at one another, "though it is no surprise that the three of you were among those selected."br /br /"Over 10,000 students across the country applied to participate in the summit." Billy clarified revealing just how incredibly lucky Jason, Zack, and Trini were to be /br /"Who knows? You guys might save the world." Kimberly suggested with a chuckle, realizing the irony of her /br /"Yeah, but from Switzerland this time." Tommy /br /"Thanks." Zack said giving Tommy a pat on the /br /"No doubt the qualities that made you successful as Power Rangers will serve you well in your new roles as peace ambassadors." Zordon continued. It was bittersweet indeed knowing that the three friends would soon be leaving their group and ending their time as Rangers. Suddenly the alarm throughout the command Center /br /"What is it Zordon?" Tommy asked /br /"Sensors in outer space indicate Zedd has begun energizing some sort of massive weapon." Alpha informed the team as he viewed the computer /br /"The day that I have feared has arrived," Zordon lamented, "Zedd has completed Serpentara, a gigantic machine of destruction." He informed the concerned /br /"Well, Zedd will most likely attack while they're at the Peace Summit." Billy realized looking at the three new /br /"That is exactly his plan." Zordon confirmed, "He knows that once the three of you depart, half of our strength will be gone." Their mentor further explained. The Rangers looked amongst themselves in shared worry. "This could be disastrous Power Rangers." He warned. "There is only one course, but it will be very difficult. Serpentara is more powerful than anything you have yet faced. You may need assistance," Zordon said showing what appeared to be a turtle on the viewing globe. Within the viewing globe, the Rangers watched as the seemingly ordinary turtle mutated into a giant new zord before their very /br /"This is your new carrier zord, Tor. If your zords are in peril, call on Tor for protection." Zordon instructed, hoping to allow the Power Rangers some slight ease before they readied to face their new /br /"Awesome!" Tommy /br /"But how will it protect us, Zordon?" Billy asked /br /"Once inside you will be shielded by Tor's heavy armor as it transports you to safety," Zordon explained. "Most important, however, I must now choose three new Power Rangers or Zedd may overwhelm us and take over the world." Their mentor /br /"Zordon, who?" Kimberly asked worried about who Zordon could possibly choose to replace her best /br /"You will learn soon enough." Zordon answered cryptically. It was unclear to the team if that meant he already had replacement rangers in mind or if not even Zordon could supply them with an answer if he wanted to. "But the power transfer must be carried out at once."br /br /"A power transfer?" Tommy wondered. He of all of them had experienced a sort of power transfer when Zordon granted him the white ranger power after he had lost his green power, but that was under a very different set of circumstances, "Is it possible?" he /br /"It is possible, but very difficult," Zordon replied. Jason crossed his arms growing more and more anxious at their current situation. It seemed Zordon had a plan, but it was all a matter of whether or not they would all succeed in carrying it out, "Because of the enormous amount of power required, the transfer can only be achieved in one place. You must travel to the Deserted Planet." He commanded. Suddenly, a scroll materialized in Tommy's /br /"Whoa." Tommy /br /"This map and ring you must retrieve the Sword of Light. Only with the sword can power be transferred to the new rangers." Zordon /br /"But…where emis/em the Deserted Planet?" Billy /br /"In a galaxy lightyears away." Zordon answered, "Alpha will teleport you there. Jason, Zack, and Trini will go with you on their last quest as Power Rangers." He instructed. The friends exchanged weak smiles. 'Their last quest as Power Rangers,' the six friends never imagined they would ever hear that statement. They never thought they would ever be apart, but alas, this was their final stand /br /"Ready when you are, Rangers." Alpha informed. With a quick breath, Tommy stepped forward, map held tight in his /br /"IT'S MORPHIN TIME!" the white ranger /br /"Tiger Zord!" cried the white /"Mastodon!" the black ranger /"Pterodactyl!" the pink ranger /"Triceratops!" the blue ranger /"Sabre tooth tiger!" yelled the yellow /"Tyrannosaurus!" the red ranger /br / They each morphed into their power suits and were teleported, flying at warp speed through space toward the Deserted Planet and their final mission as a full /br /~~~br /br / Meanwhile, back on Earth, it was a new day at school and Rocky, Adam, and Aisha's first real day starting at Angel Grove High. They had been shadowing Kimberly, Tommy, and Billy while the official transfer paperwork went through /br / Though Bulk and Skull had spent the better part of Sunday night trying to make themselves feel better about not being selected for the ambassadorship, Skull still felt downhearted about Trini. He at least hoped he'd be able to spend some time with her before she left. That hope seemed to weaken as neither Trini, Zack, or Jason were at school, and neither were Tommy, Kimberly, or Billy for that /br /'Typical. Always disappearing when I need her.' Skull thought upset by her absence, 'She was always good at that.'br /br / As Bulk and Skull left the classroom to retrieve stuff out of their lockers for the next period, Aisha seemed to catch the boys' attention. She was looking between a small piece of paper in her hand and the series of hunter green lockers in front of her. Skull considered for a minute, 'Aisha's really pretty…wonder if she'd be into me if Trini and I don't make it-' Bulk let go of the door and walked towards her. The closing door knocked into the side of Skull's head and flung the boy out of his daydreams. He shook his head trying to regain his /br /"Aisha," Bulk greeted pleasantly, leaning his arm against the lockers coolly and looking over her outfit, "You look so nice on your first day. Can I uh, be of assistance?" he offered, moving to help her with her locker combination. She handed him the /br /"Sure, thanks." Aisha accepted his offer though sounding unsure if he could actually help her. She and Skull shared an awkward smile, before she turned back to watch Bulk fiddle with her combination. After a few failed attempts at opening her locker, Adam and Rocky came to Aisha's side to watch. She smiled at her pals and shrugged, trying not to laugh at Bulk's eagerness to get the locker open. Skull rolled his eyes. Bulk was after Aisha, and it was hard to be invested in the idea of going after a new girl when his heart belonged to Trini, who hadn't even left yet; though it sure felt like she was already long /br / Suddenly, Skull's eyes shot open wide as he looked toward the hallway. A mysterious purple smoke was creeping through the hall and quickly wafting towards them. Scared speechless, he tapped Bulk on the shoulder in an attempt to alert him. As it grew closer, he gasped and repeatedly tapped Bulk's shoulder with more force. Bulk frowned and waved him off as he ripped the locker door right off its hinges, Aisha's belongings spilling out onto the /br / The smoke had finally reached them and Skull let out another loud gasp. Bulk looked up and finally noticed the smoke, but it was too late. The boys collapsed to the floor while Rocky, Adam, and Aisha ducked under the roll of smoke. Bulk and Skull didn't see the three being teleported out of the building just in time before the smoke settled to the floor. For the punks on the floor, however, everything turned hazy and then they were plunged into /br / What the Rangers soon discovered was that the smoke was released by Serpantara throughout Angel Grove, putting everyone to sleep. By the time everyone had awakened two full days later, the Power Rangers defeated Zedd's powerful monster with Tor's protection, and Rocky, Adam, and Aisha's /br /It was easy to see that the three new Angel Grove High students were perfect to fill the roles of the red, black, and yellow rangers. With the abilities of the Sword of Light, the power transfer was successful. But with the monster battle, Jason, Zack, and Trini lost precious time to properly pack and prepare for their long trip. They would be leaving the following /br / After Skull awoke, at the first opportunity, he attempted to call Trini, but found he couldn't get a hold of her as she had to scramble and pack for her life-changing trip. Trini didn't have a single moment's rest from the battle, and having to pack up her life in just one night before her 8 am International flight, was exhausting /br / Both teens were devastated that they may not get to say goodbye face to /br / Not wanting to spend the night alone, and believing that Trini may be leaving Angel Grove forever, Skull invited Bulk over to stay the night. The punk felt it was about time he told his friend the whole story of what's been going on./p 


	16. The Airport

_**Chapter 16: The Airport**_

Bulk blinked in bewilderment. Skull looked back at him, anxiously waiting for his friend to respond. They sat sharing a large pizza on the floor of Skull's bedroom. Bulk shook his head trying to process what Skull had just told him, as it was never something he expected to hear.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, "Think you could run that by me one more time, please?" Bulk asked, to ensure he hadn't misheard the unbelievable news Skull had just told him.

"Trini and I have been dating for awhile," Skull clarified slowly, "I'm really bummed out right now and don't want to be alone by obsessing about her leaving. That's why I asked you to come over…Well, _that_ and to tell you about what's been going on." Skull said taking a bite of his pizza. Bulk was amazed.

"Wh-When did _that_ happen? I mean, you and Trini?" Bulk asked. Skull chewed his bite of pizza and swallowed to answer.

"Well, see, we made this bet back in September." Skull answered, "She lost the bet and she agreed to go on a date with me. After that…I don't know, we just sorta clicked." He explained before taking another bite. Bulk looked at him with mild confusion as he still struggled fully comprehend what he was hearing.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Bulk wondered. "I mean, you and _Trini Kwan, TRINI KWAN, _a couple? That's…that's…" he laughed as the truth finally settled in. Skull swallowed his bite.

"I don't know. I thought maybe you'd just make fun of me for dating a member of the dweeb team, or that you'd tease _her_ for going out with me." He confessed. Bulk's smile dropped, feeling hurt. The larger punk extended a hand to rest on his buddy's shoulder.

"I would never make fun of you for that, _or_ Trini for dating you. But I'm sorry you thought I would." Bulk replied genuinely, "I'd be happy for you, I mean…I AM happy for you, man." Bulk assured him with a smile, "Trini is one of the hottest girls at our school." He said, "Sure, she's an eco-geek, but she's a really attractive geek." Skull's cheeks flushed thinking about her.

"YEAH," Skull replied without a second thought, "She really is." He agreed.

"And YOU, my best friend, dating the hottest, smartest, nicest girl in school?" he chuckled at the amazingness of the whole situation, "Unbelievable." Bulk smiled, "I'm just sorry she's leavin'." Bulk said turning to eat his own pizza, taking a huge bite out of his slice. Skull sighed.

"Yeah, me too." Skull said, looking down at the floor.

"But I mean," Bulk mumbled, his mouth still full, "You two were just dating, right? Like a casual thing. You weren't THAT serious of a couple, were ya?" Bulk asked, ready to help ease his friend's sadness, assuming that their relationship was more casual than Skull initially let on. It would be easy to convince Skull to just forget about her and move on. There were plenty of fish in the sea. Skull stammered embarrassedly, his face turning red.

"A-actually…" Skull paused. "We…may have slept together." He boldly confessed. Bulk's eyes widened and he nearly choked on his pizza. Bulk coughed, struggling for air, "Whoa, whoa, Bulky, you okay?" Skull asked and began slapping Bulk's back, trying to help. Bulk coughed hard and managed to swallow his food.

"You did WHAT?" He asked, "No way!" Bulk exclaimed. Skull nodded, a cheeky grin tugging at the sides of his mouth. Bulk gave him a playful shove. "I don't believe it."

"We did, yeah. She snuck over to my house a few nights ago, and well, one thing led to another…" Skull chuckled. Bulk laughed as he felt incredibly happy for his friend.

"Unbelievable." Bulk repeated, unable to repress another chuckle, "How was it I mean, tell me everything!" Bulk grinned. Skull leaned back with a laugh.

"Oh, it was the best, my friend. Thee best!" Skull emphasized, "She just, and I…and her, and HER..," he stammered playing the events from that night over and over in his mind. He let out a relieved, star struck moan, a wide grin on his face. Bulk laughed and rustled his friend's hair. Skull's smile faded.

"Thing is though, after that night, I realized…I love her, Bulky." The skinny punk confessed. He nodded to Bulk beside him, "I really love Trini." Touched, Bulk smiled and patted his friend on the back,

"Did you tell her you love her?" Bulk asked.

"No!" Skull admitted, upset at himself, "It stinks 'cause she's the first person I've ever felt this way about and now she's leavin' first thing in the morning…and I may never see her again." He said, heartbroken as his own words ripped his heart further into pieces.

"Can't you go over there tonight? Call her? Something to talk to her before she leaves?" Bulk suggested, "W-what time is her flight maybe you two could meet-"

"It's nearly midnight, Bulky. She's probably asleep. I don't want to wake her before that long flight." Skull rationalized, "If I call her it'll wake up her parents and then we'll REALLY be in trouble." He let out a defeated sigh. "And I heard her flight takes off at 8am out of LAX. We can't meet before her flight, there's just no time..." Bulk gave a nod, disappointed for Skull's sake. But it was then that Skull's dad's words crossed the heartbroken teen's mind.

Suddenly, Bulk smiled as an idea came to his mind.

"But what if…you _did _meet her before her flight?" Bulk wondered aloud. He and Skull shared a smile and they each took another bite out of their pizza slices. They had a plan to devise.

~~~

Trini's alarm blared for her to wake up. She sat up in the darkness and silenced the clock before rolling out of bed to change from her pajamas into her airport clothes she'd set aside the night before. Her blinds slightly cracked, she could see it was still dark out. It felt like she had never slept at all. As she changed into a warm pair of thick jeans and a long sleeve white flannel, she looked at her large black suitcase and her medium sized silver suitcase. All of her clothes, toiletries, a couple of books, and a few other keepsakes were all packed between the two bags.

There was knock at her bedroom door.

"Trini, are you awake?" her mom asked her before pushing open the door gently.

"I'm awake. Tired, but awake." Trini answered, putting on her long wool yellow coat and a matching beret. Her mom smiled, holding back tears.

"I'll bet you're excited for this whole new chapter of your life." Her mom said, proudly.

"I am, though…I am a little nervous." Trini confessed.

"It'll all be alright. You'll have your friends with you, too." She reminded her daughter. That's right. At least she didn't have to undertake this life changing journey alone. She would have Jason and Zack with her. Trini gave a nod. Her mom opened her arms for a hug and began to softly sob.

"Oh, mom, please don't cry. It'll only be for a year." Trini comforted.

"I know." Trini's mom said, choking back a sob, "I know, it's just, your father and I are so proud of you, and it's just hard knowing that you're leaving."

"Hey," Trini's dad interjected, getting his own hug from his daughter, "We're going to miss you."

"I'm going to miss you guys, too!" Trini said trying to hold back her own tears.

"Did you want anything to eat before you have to leave?" her dad offered. Trini shook her head and went for the handles of her bags.

"No, I think I'll just get something to eat at the airport, or maybe buy something to eat on the plane." Trini answered. On que, the doorbell rang. "Oh! That's probably Jason and Zack." Trini headed to the door, her dad taking one of her bags for her as he and Mrs. Kwan walked to the front hallway. Her mom opened the door and there standing on the front step was Jason.

"Hello, Jason." Mrs. Kwan greeted.

"Hi, Mrs. Kwan." Jason replied with a friendly smile. Before he had a chance to ask if Trini was ready, the girl in yellow rolled out the front door and pulled him in a hug. "Hey." He said, patting her on the back. "Ready to go? Zack's waiting in the taxi." He explained.

"Yeah, give me just one second." Trini requested.

"Sure. Here, I'll get your bags in the car." Jason said, taking the silver suitcase from Trini and the other from Mr. Kwan.

"Thank you, Jason." Mr. Kwan thanked pleasantly. Jason gave him a nod and rolled them down to the car as Zack got out to help load them into the remaining space in the trunk. Trini turned to her parents and gave them one last hug.

"You're going to have a wonderful time." Her father blessed, "And here," he said reaching into his wallet and pulling out a twenty dollar bill and putting it in her hand, "Buy yourself something to eat when you get to the airport." He instructed.

"Thanks, I will." Trini thanked, tucking the bill into her front pocket with her drivers' license.

"Be sure to call us when you land, and write to us every chance you can." Her mom added, still trying not to cry.

"I will." Trini promised, "I love you, guys."

"We love you too." Her father replied.

"We love you so much." Her mom added. Trini pulled from the hug and looked back to the awaiting taxi and began to head over.

"Bye!" she waved back to her parents as she jogged toward the vehicle. Her parents wished her goodbye and waved back as she climbed into the back seat with Jason, as Zack sat in the front passenger seat. As the taxi pulled away, Trini watched as the figures of her parents began to shrink as they pulled further and further away.

The ride to the airport was uneventful and the taxi pulled up outside the baggage check area for the International terminal of LAX. The three students climbed out of the vehicle and pulled out their bags. Jason paid the driver with money his parents gave him, they thanked the driver and headed inside.

"Well," Zack sighed, "Goodbye, California." He said, looking to his other friends.

"Hey, at least we're in this together." Jason reminded as they walked in through the automatic doors toward the airline counter to check their luggage. They checked in their bags and headed toward the security checkpoint.

~~~

DINGADINGADINGADINGADING

Skull sat up in bed with a panicked start as his brass alarm clock clanged on his nightstand. It was time to put his plan into action.

"Bulk! Bulky wake up!" he yelled at Bulk sleeping on the floor as the small punk catapulted out of bed already fully dressed save for his boots. Bulk sat up sleepily with a startled snort, glanced around, laid right back down and felt back asleep. Skull quickly pulled on his shoes and tied the laces. "BULKY!" he shouted sharply making the larger boy shoot up.

"What? What? I'm awake!" he replied.

"Good!" Skull replied, tossing Bulk's shoes to him, "We gotta get to the airport!" Skull said anxiously. Bulk's eyes went wide and he leaped onto his feet.

"Oh that's right! What are we waiting for, let's get your girl back!" Bulk exclaimed. The boys raced out of the room and down the stairs to the front door. Skull snatched the car keys as they bolted out the door and down the front drive.

"Dad's gonna kill me for stealing the car-" Skull worried, tossing the keys to Bulk to drive while he climbed into the passenger seat and popped in a stick of gum.

"Hey, this is in the name of love! He can't get mad at you for that." Bulk argued starting the car.

"Pretty sure he can…" Skull muttered buckling his seatbelt. The tires screamed as the car peeled out of the gravel drive and sped out onto the main road. Bulk drove fast and erratically on the highway, it was astounding the boys weren't pulled over. Finally, the sign for their exit was coming up fast.

"LAX, Bulk that's the exit!" Skull shouted as the exit approached them quickly, "That's the exit!"

"What?"

"BULK TURN RIGHT RIGHT NOW!" he screamed, grabbing the wheel and forcing the car through the gore lane and narrowly escaping hitting another car. The other car blasted their horn as the Buick's tires screamed turning back on course.

"You don't need to shout, Skull. I know how to get to the airport." Bulk protested, shaking his head. Skull's heart was racing as he clutched the seat, thanking god he was alive. "You know what to do once we pull up right?" Bulk asked wanting to run over the plan before they made it to the International drop-off and pick up zone.

"Yup." Skull said with a determined nod.

"You run in there, find her, and pour your guts out. Nothing can stop you from displaying your fiery unyielding passion!" Bulk said clenching a fist in emphasis. Skull mimicked his action, smacking his chewing gum. His eyes were ablaze, ready to confess to her his true feelings. "You say, 'BABY, I love you more than life itself, stay, MARRY ME." Bulk instructed. Skull grimaced.

"That may be taking it a bit too far there, pally." He replied, "I think I'll just stick to just telling her that I love her." Skull explained. Bulk shrugged.

"I suppose that works too." He admitted as he pulled the Buick quickly against the curb. "Go time, buddy! You got this!" Bulk shouted as Skull launched himself out of the car and sprinted through the automatic doors. He looked around until he saw the sign directing patrons to the security checkpoint and took off in a run in that direction. A desk clerk yelled to him not to run, but their order fell on deaf ears. Skull was on a mission.

As he ran, he spotted a shop selling flowers out front. He knew he was short on time, but…

~~~

Jason, Zack, and Trini finally made it to the front of the security line. One at a time, they showed the security officer their IDs, passports, and boarding passes. After the officer stamped their boarding passes and passports, they were waved through. The three teens placed their carry-on bags onto the belt one at a time along with their metal items and coins from their pockets. All three went to take off their wrist communicators instinctually, but remembered, they were gone. Simultaneously the friends shared disappointed glances, each knowing what the other was thinking.

They carried on silently, walking through the portals and gathering their things, ready to head to their gate to buy breakfast and wait from their plane.

~~~

Skull huffed and puffed and felt like his heart was about to give out from the running, but he didn't stop. He made it to the roped opening of the security line, where he spotted Trini's bright yellow coat. His eyes widened. Moving on pure adrenaline, he jumped over the plastic divider between the regular passenger security line and into the express line for employees. He shoved his way past a few uniformed people and up to the security officer podium.

"Sir, I need to see your passport and boarding pass-" the aggravated female officer ordered.

"I don't have one, I just need to talk to someone-" Skull explained desperately starting to move pass her, still out of breath.

"Sir, to get through security, you'll need to have your passport and a boarding pass to get past this point." She repeated, now growing more agitated and on alert. Skull groaned.

"No, you're not listening!" He yelled, his heart was pounding hard and his breath was still catching up as he argued with the officer, "I'm, I'm not flying, I just need to talk to that girl for just one second, please!" Skull argued. Trini was beginning to walk away. "Trini!" he shouted, "Trini, wait!" he screamed. Trini looked around.

"Sir!" The officer yelled. At this point, a few police officers were making their way over as Skull started attempting to push his way through to the portal area. "Sir! I'm going to have to ask you to leave, provide proper identification, or you WILL be taken into custody!" she threatened. Skull was now genuinely getting scared of her threats, but he was so desperate to get to Trini whatever it took.

"I just need to talk to that girl for, like two seconds, PLEASE!" Skull pleaded as he pointed to Trini across the room.

"Sir!" the security officer shouted, still keeping Skull back.

"TRINI!" Skull called to her. Finally, she spotted him.

"Skull?" she wondered and headed quickly up the exit ramp to get to him as she saw police officers approaching him. "I'll be right back, guys," Trini assured a very confused Jason and Zack as she took off in a run, "Skull!" she called back, waving to him. Skull ran from the officers to meet her. The officers however, were on his tail.

"Sir, you need to-" one of the officers taking a strong grip on Skull's shoulder.

"Wait! Wait, stop. It's okay, officers, I just need to talk with him and then he won't cause you any trouble." Trini promised. "My friends and I are the Teen Youth Peace Ambassadors and we're leaving for Switzerland…" she began to explain. This seemed to win the officers over.

"Very well." They complied, giving Skull a stern look before they returned to their post. Skull let out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks, Trini." He breathed hard with a chuckle.

"Skull, what are you doing here?" she asked. Though she was happy to see him before she had to leave, he caused such a scene that she knew Jason and Zack were watching. The punk was still trying to catch his breath and responded by pulling out a pair of pale yellow roses he had tucked into the waistband of his camo pants. "Oh, Skull…" Trini said carefully taking them.

"I…didn't want you to leave with getting to say goodbye and that I'm gonna miss you." Skull explained.

"I'll miss you, too." She replied. Trini looked as if she was about ready to cry and pulled him into a long hug.

Skull swallowed the lump in his throat. He knew that it was now or never, "I guess now is the best time to tell you..." He whispered.  
"Tell me what?" she asked. Skull gave a long pause before taking a deep breath.

"The real reason I had to see you this morning…Trini, I love you." He confessed. Trini's face turned red and she pulled back in surprise.

"Skull…" Trini stammered, unsure of how to respond, "This…this is definitely _not_ the best time to tell me that. This is the _worst_ possible time." She scolded, "I'm about to fly halfway around the world-"

"Look, I know, I should've told you that night you came over to my house." Skull admitted, "That was one of the single greatest nights of my entire life. I should've told you long before that, but I couldn't let you go without telling you or I would never forgive myself." He explained, "You don't have to say it back and I'm not expecting you to stay and throw away the ambassadorship for me, in fact, I don't want you to." He assured. "This is an amazing opportunity for you and," he continued, taking her hands in his, "I know you're going to save the world, Trini Kwan…I just wanted to tell you before you go."

They held one another's hands for a moment until tears stung Trini's eyes. Her heart ached heavily in her chest. If he had only told her sooner, she wouldn't have applied for the ambassadorship. She could've stayed in Angel Grove. This ambassadorship, she couldn't reject it, abandon her friends. Long distance…Trini didn't even think she would return to live in Angel Grove. She didn't want to leave Skull hanging, just waiting for her when it wasn't clear if she would even come back. She knew what she had to do. She kissed him on the cheek and squeezed his hands.

"Goodbye, Eugene." She said. And with that she turned and left, roses in hand, and leaving Skull there to helplessly watch her leave.

Trini walked briskly to Zack and Jason, who had been waiting, worried and very confused. Trini took her bag handle from Jason and continued walking toward their gate without another word, trying her hardest not to cry.

"Goodbye." Skull replied softly despite Trini being far out of earshot. His heart shattered. Defeated, he walked back to the entrance of the airport. He walked out the doors and into the bitter December air. The tan Buick was parked by the curb waiting for him. Skull climbed in, head hung low.

"Hey! So, how'd it go?" Bulk asked ecstatically, "Did you confess your love in, UNYIELDING FIERY PASSION?" Bulk asked, again raising a triumphant fist in emphasis.

"Yeah, 'unyielding fiery passion' nearly got me arrested, too." Skull replied harshly as he buckled his seatbelt.

"But did you find her? Did you tell her? What did she say?" Bulk clamored. Skull shook his head. "Aw, man, I'm sorry," he said resting a hand on his friend's upper back. "Did she give you the whole, 'we can still be friends, let's keep in touch,' thing?" Bulk questioned.

"That's the thing," Skull said frustrated, "She didn't say she loved me, she didn't even say she just wanted to be friends. She just said…'Goodbye, Eugene,'" he recounted, "And then she left." Bulk shook his head, "Let's just…let's just get home before my dad kills me for stealing his car." Skull instructed turning to face out the window. Bulk gave a nod.

"Okay." He replied, driving away from the curb and heading back to the house. Skull watched the scenery change as they drove from the bustling city of Los Angeles and further out into the less busy roads of Angel Grove.

'So that's it.' Skull thought to himself watching the trees and powerlines go by, 'Nothing but a goodbye. Did she ever love me? She had to have to some degree at one point, right?' he let out a quiet sigh, 'You waited too long, Skullovitch. Time to move on, like she has…' he internally lamented. It was one of the most painful car rides of his entire life until he finally made it home, his dad waiting angrily for him for taking off with the car.

~~~

Once the trio made it closer to their gate, they spotted a bagel vendor, and headed towards the counter to order some breakfast. With their orders paid for, the teens sat at the waiting area of their gate. Zack and Jason began digging into their breakfast sandwich bagels and juice. Trini wasn't feeling hungry just yet and set her breakfast to-go bag beside her. She clutched the roses in her hand, staring at the soft yellow petals of the freshly opened blossoms.

The boys looked to one another silently communicating that they were worried about Trini.

"Hey, Trini." Zack piped up looking at her with concern. She tilted her head in reply, "You okay?" he asked.

"I'll be okay." Trini said. She looked away from the flowers and gave her friends a weak smile, "I'll be fine, I promise." She assured them, hoping to ease their concern. Her attitude and her pain-filled eyes did anything but ease them.

"What did Skull want?" Jason asked, suspecting something going on that she wasn't telling them.

"Yeah, and why did he give you roses?" Zack added.

"He," she gave a brief pause, "he just wanted to say goodbye." She answered. Jason raised his eyebrow.

"He fought through security just so he could say goodbye?" Jason interrogated.

"Seems pretty crazy, even for Skull to pull somethin' like that." Zack commented. Trini shook her head.

"Look, guys, I really don't want to talk about it right now." She snapped. The boys went back to eating in silence. Trini shook her head and stood up. She placed the flowers in her seat and began to walk away, "I'm heading to the restroom." She told them, "I'll be right back." With Trini out of sight, Jason and Zack immediately leaned close.

"So, what was all that about?" Zack asked Jason.

"I don't know." He answered, watching Trini disappear behind the door to the womens' restroom.

"I mean, running through security, roses, that hug they shared?" Zack asked. Zack hadn't noticed Trini plant a kiss on Skull's cheek, but Jason did. The former red ranger didn't want to bother mentioning it, but it certainly raised some flags in his mind.

"Do think…they had feelings for each other?" Jason suggested.

"Trini? Have feelings for Skull?" Zack asked skeptically, "Gimme a break. I thought Trini had a thing for Richie for awhile." The former black ranger mentioned. Jason shook his head.

"Trini always insisted that she and Richie were just friends." Jason reminded him, "I mean, Skull could've had sincere feelings toward Trini." He said suggesting the possibility, "He _did_ give her roses and go through all that trouble…" Jason looked to the two pale yellow roses sitting in Trini's seat. Zack shook his head and went back to finishing the last few bites of his food.

"It's too weird." Zack said.

"I think we should leave it be." Jason replied, "She'll talk about it with us when she's ready. And if she doesn't, we'll still be there for her." He concluded. Zack nodded.

"Right. We gotta stick together." Zack said. The boys were in agreement. They wouldn't talk about the exchange they witnessed between her and Skull until she was ready. A moment or two later, Trini returned, and the boys struck up a conversation about all the things they were excited to experience in Switzerland, getting settled in, and beginning to explore the beautiful mountainous country. They were determined to get Trini's mind on something else.

Trini allowed herself to express her own excitement for what was to come. This was an incredible adventure they would be experiencing together for the next year and they wanted to get the most out of it. She couldn't let herself feel down about Skull. What was done was done. It was time to let him go, let go of the past, move forward, and embrace whatever was awaiting her in the year to come.

'I'll miss my time with Skull and the good times we shared.' Trini thought, and she smiled and laughed with her friends as they sat in their seats on the airplane, 'He was my first, and I'll never regret that, but we have our whole lives ahead of us. I'm sure that after some time, my relationship with Skull will be nothing but a happy memory.' Trini assured herself, buckling her seatbelt and anticipating the possibilities that lay just waiting beyond the horizon. 


End file.
